Secret Loves Year 2
by SnuggleKitten69
Summary: A continuation of "Secret Loves" wherein Hermione admits to herself liking more than just the way Harry hugs. This is a Hermione-centric, Harry/Hermione/Polyamorous. It is not a harem story the way most people think of "harem" in fan fiction.
1. Anger Mismanagement

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters and the universes in which they exist are wholly owned by JKR, her estate, survivors, etc. Any original characters, situations, spells, etc. not specifically mentioned in the existing published works of JKR are the property of their respective owners. I derive no monetary reward from the writing of stories in the Harry Potter genre. I do derive monetary compensation from telling people and companies just how bloody stupid they're being.

Author's Notes with regard to Secret Loves Year 2:  
>My own attempts at broadening the Harry Potter genre pale in comparison to some of the fine authors you will find on this site. Should you care to read some decent authors on this site, I turn your attention to Robst, KB0, Chem Prof, Aealket, nonjon, kyaru-chan, vvc, Clell65619, Canoncansodoff and Rorschach's Blot just to name a few.<p>

This chapter was last updated 10 June 2014 to correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors; paragraphs were reduced in size, and some content which had previously been removed was re-introduced.

Thanks to Texan-muggle for the grammatical and spelling correction suggestions.

Secret Loves Year 2 Chapter 1

Platform 9 ¾ London, June 6, 1992

Harry and Hermione had just finished escaping the Weasley matriarch's farewell hug and had exited platform nine and three quarters. They were smiling shyly at one another when they heard a man's voice.

Harry and Hermione looked up as "Kitten!" was shouted by a tall, well-built man with brown hair standing next to a woman who was so clearly an older version of Hermione; an older version that had learned to tame her hair though.

Dan and Emma Granger were both thirty years old and they clearly loved their daughter, based on the way she was greeted. Dan picked her up in a gentle but engulfing hug and kissed her on the cheek then set her down again, only for Hermione to be engulfed in a hug by her mother. Dan looked at the boy standing next to his little girl.

The boy was dressed rather poorly in clothes that were clearly three or four sizes too big for him, his glasses looked to be two sizes too small and he appeared to be rather thin for a normal boy of eleven years old. From the way Hermione had been acting around him, this must be the Harry Potter boy she mentioned in every letter she had written home. Emma, too, had noticed the boy and his condition and schooled an inviting smile on her face.

"Mum, Daddy. I want you to meet my very best friend," Hermione was saying. "This is Harry Potter. Harry, this is my Mum and Dad, Emma and Dan," she said, smiling at Harry.

Dan put his hand out for Harry to shake. Harry wiped his hand and shook hands with Dan. Harry then went to shake hands with Emma but was instead pulled into a hug.

Emma noticed Harry stiffen and released him almost immediately. Dan also noticed Harry's behaviour. "Nice to meet you, Harry. Hermione has told us so much about you," Emma said.

Harry was about to respond when a heavy hand gripped his shoulder and spun him around.

"Boy! Where have you been? You've kept me waiting around these freaks long enough!" Harry's purple-faced Uncle Vernon shouted four inches from Harry's face.

Vernon looked at Dan and Emma standing with Hermione. He then turned back to Harry. "More freaks! Let's go, Boy!" Vernon shouted, grabbing Harry's upper arm and frog-marched him to the car park.

Dan picked up Hermione's trunk and looked at Emma. Emma took Hermione's hand. Handing the car keys to Emma, Dan said, "I will catch up to you at the car, Love," then strode off, carrying Hermione's trunk on one shoulder and following Vernon and Harry while staying in Vernon's blind spot.

Vernon led Harry to the car park, put Harry's trunk in the boot and roughly shoved Harry into the passenger-side back seat. Already in the car was a thin, almost emaciated, woman in the front passenger seat and a rather large boy taking up more than half of the back seat.

Dan quickly wrote down the license plate number, make and model of the car. He then walked to where he had parked his BMW. Emma and Hermione were already sitting in the car waiting on Dan. Emma popped the boot, Dan put the trunk in the boot and hopped into the driver's seat.

"Belts on?" Dan asked. He got a two-voice chorus of "Yes!" and started the car. He manoeuvred through the car park and waited in line at the pay gate. He noted he was five cars behind Harry's uncle.

"Kitten," Dan began, looking in his mirror at Hermione, "what can you tell me about Harry's home life? I need you to be completely honest."

Hermione thought for a moment and decided her parents needed to know the real truth. "Daddy, Harry's home life is abysmal. He stays with his mother's sister and her husband. They aren't very nice to him and, up until last year, his room was a cupboard under the stairs."

Dan had watched Hermione's face while she spoke and knew she was neither exaggerating nor fabricating what she had said.

Emma turned around in her seat and looked at Hermione. "A cupboard under the stairs? Is it safe to presume Harry has been abused, Honey?" she asked Hermione.

Hermione nodded sadly. "They withhold food and make him do most of the chores. You should see the scars on his arms and hands, Mum. They're awful!" she said, trying not to cry for her friend.

Dan paid for the parking and navigated to the motorway.

-oOoOo-

"You ungrateful little bastard!" Vernon yelled once they were in the car. "Forcing me to rub elbows with all those freaks!" His face purpling even further as he practically threw his money at the pay gate attendant.

He drove out and got to the motorway and began driving towards Little Whining. Once he was on the motorway his shouting began again.

"We provide you with everything! EVERYTHING! You thankless little snot!" he shouted, spit flying out of his mouth and hitting the dash.

Harry sat in the back seat, trying to make himself as small as possible.

"Then you make me come all the bloody way out to come get you and you have the stones to make me wait! What in the hell were you thinking, Boy?"

"I..." Harry began but was cut off.

"None of your lip, you ungrateful little shit! How dare you? And who was that little whore you were with anyway? Another one of those freaks!" he yelled.

Harry had always been accepting of the abuse he received. He would, however, not broach ANYONE insulting Hermione.

"Don't you EVER call her that again!" Harry shouted back, rising out of his slouch.

"How DARE you raise your voice to me, you ungrateful little bastard!" Vernon shouted, turning in his seat. "When we get home you will learn to fear me even more! I am going to..." he was cut off mid-rant by Petunia's scream.

Vernon looked back towards the road just as the front of the car impacted the oncoming lorry, as Harry tightly gripped Hedwig's cage.

-oOoOo-

Dan had been following Vernon and stayed half a mile back to prevent being seen by Vernon, a completely unfounded concern. Emma was still turned in her seat talking with Hermione when Dan's surprised shout of "Hold on!" and his slamming on the brakes caused Emma and Hermione both to brace into their seats.

Dan had watched as Harry's uncle's car veered into the oncoming lane of traffic on the turn. Fortunately for the Grangers, the three drivers following them were all paying attention this morning. The two drivers behind Vernon had not been so diligent. When Vernon's car struck the oncoming lorry, several things happened very quickly.

The engine compartment and the front seat of the car merged into a single, collapsed mass of crushed iron, steel, foam, plastic, flesh, bone and blood. Vernon and Petunia were killed instantly.

Two hundredths of a second later, Dudley, for whom seat belts had never been made large enough, slid from his seat and splattered, literally, into the crushing mass of the front of the lorry.

Three tenths of a second after this, the petrol lorry driver immediately behind Vernon recognized, far too late, that he was going to hit the car in front of him and began moving his foot to the brake pedal, never to make it.

The impact with the rear of Vernon's car pulled the petrol lorry into the oncoming lane when the right front wheel of the petrol lorry crushed the rear left corner of Vernon's car, resulting in the car being crushed between the two lorries and the rear petrol trailer to slide into the oncoming lane.

Half a second later, the car following the petrol lorry struck the rear of the first petrol trailer doing in excess of eighty miles per hour, the driver having been shouting at his girlfriend in a heated exchange over another woman.

He would never be talking to either woman again as the passenger compartment of the car no longer existed due to the impact, which also tore open the rear two-thousand-gallon petrol vessel of the lead trailer, releasing the liquid petrol onto the hot engine block and exhaust system, causing a large cloud of vapour.

An errant spark from debris ignited the cloud, rupturing the second petrol trailer, resulting in an enormous explosion, scattering burning wreckage across all six lanes of the motorway.

Hermione screamed, "Harry!" as the heat wave from the petrol explosion reached their car and Hermione could feel the thermal pulse through the windscreen.

Dan pulled Emma and Hermione down and covered them with his body as wreckage struck the BMW from a quarter mile away, shattering the windscreen and tearing the driver's mirror off.

Once the sound of the blast and falling debris had subsided, Dan let the girls up and looked at the piece of jagged metal embedded in the seat where moments before Emma's head would have been.

He then looked at the disaster in front of him through the hole in his side of the windscreen and knew, without a doubt, no one would have survived that cataclysm.

-oOoOo-

Harry heard Aunt Petunia scream.

He looked up and saw the front of the lorry filling the windscreen.

He grabbed Hedwig's cage and tightly closed his eyes.

Suddenly it was very quiet but Harry felt the need to keep his eyes tightly shut. He could hear Hedwig's distress but knew she was not hurt.

He could, however, feel something pressing in on him from all sides. His magic was straining against something, holding it off, pushing it back. And whatever was fighting with his magic was losing.

Badly.

He felt his magic stabilise and opened his eyes. He saw a yellow field of energy, like the static displaying on the television when it wasn't properly connected, in a ball around him.

Most of Hedwig's cage was in the ball. The part that had not been in the ball was gone. The entire top of the cage was missing. The ends of the bars looked as if they had been cut and polished.

He could see and hear nothing beyond the yellow radiance.

He then realized the seat he was sitting in was similarly cut off at the edge of the field. This was most pronounced by the seat belt which had been cut both at the shoulder and at the retractor. The buckle was still intact but the seat beyond it was, if it was still there, on the outside of the field.

"Well, girl, I've no idea what happened," Harry said, attempting to calm Hedwig. He opened the remaining portion of the cage's door and reached in to pet Hedwig. Although the owl was clearly distressed, the moment Harry touched her she calmed down.

She nibbled gently at his hands as if he'd been away from her for ages.

He scratched the feathers on her head, which she enjoyed. He thought very carefully about what had happened and asked himself, "_If I were Hermione, what would I do?_" He considered all of his possible options.

The one thing he was missing was something upon which to write and something with which to write. "_If I had my wand..._" he thought but stopped mid thought at the realization his wand, his father's cloak and all of his Hogwarts belongings were in his trunk in the boot. "Shit," he said aloud.

-oOoOo-

Emma was hugging Dan and Hermione for all she was worth.

Had Dan not stopped and hadn't pulled her down as the explosion-launched wreckage ripped into their car, she would have been killed, Dan would likely have been seriously injured and Hermione...

Hermione would have been without anyone to hold her as she lost not only her mother but her best friend, too. She thought that Hermione was in denial at the moment as she only seemed mildly upset. "_Is she in shock or does she know something?_"

"Honey, Can you tell me why you're not more upset with your friend being in that," Emma gestured towards the burning wreckage the emergency services were currently dousing with foam and water.

"Harry's safe. In fact, I imagine he isn't even injured," Hermione said.

Emma looked up at Dan, who also had a concerned look on his face.

"Kitten, are you trying to tell us Harry is in a better place now?" Dan asked calmly, thinking perhaps Hermione was working from a completely different frame of reference.

Hermione looked at her father in disbelief. "No, Daddy. Harry isn't dead. I've read all about this sort of thing. It has happened many times in the past when a magical child is in a life-threatening situation, their magic will save them. Don't you remember when I was eight and I walked into the street in front of Mrs. Laurel's car and I bounced off the bumper and landed halfway down the block and started crying? Remember how they didn't even find a bruise?" she looked back and forth between her mother and father.

Dan and Emma were looking at each other with expressions of horror on their face as Hermione reminding them of the incident undid the obliviators' work.

-oooOOOooo-

Emma could see it in her mind's eye as if the day was happening all over again.

When the white Volvo sedan had struck Hermione and she flew through the air, Emma's life ended. Her little girl. Everything she and Dan had been working for.

Her precious little baby.

Was standing up.

Was pointing at the car.

Looked at Emma.

And started crying.

Dan had heard the squeal of tires and ran to the street and watched as Hermione was surrounded by a golden halo and how she and the halo had bounced, like a beach ball and came to rest with Hermione standing in the middle of the road and pointing at the car.

Both Dan and Emma had run to her and picked her up. They were both hysterical and overwhelmingly happy.

Then the strange men had come and had waved their sticks in their faces.

"Great Aunt Minerva," the man told her, "is babysitting your little girl and she will be coming home shortly. You should go put fresh sheets on her bed for her," the man had said, swirling his stick in front of her face.

-oooOOOooo-

They were standing next to the car, looking at the destruction in front of them.

"Those bastards!" Emma screamed in rage.

"Em!" Dan said pointedly, "Ermione-hay is-ay ight-ray ere-hay."

"Mum!" Hermione looked at Emma with wide eyes, having never ever heard her mother swear before.

Emma looked at Hermione and covered her mouth in embarrassment the mumbled "I'm sorry, Honey," through her hand.

Dan looked at Emma with a raised eyebrow then turned to Hermione. "So, Kitten, where would they take Harry if he..." he stopped as he noticed the tightness around Hermione's eyes and the minor quivering of her chin. These were tell-tale signs she was about to begin crying hysterically. "Um...sorry...since he is okay, do you think the emergency services people will take him to the hospital?"

"Yes, Daddy. St. Mungo's! We should go there as soon as we can!" Hermione said excitedly, trying to push the growing sliver of doubt about Harry's safety out of her mind.

Just then, several men appeared, literally out of no where, dressed in robes. They saw Dan, Emma and Hermione and were in the process of waving their wands when Hermione yelled.

"Wait! I am a Hogwarts student!" she yelled at the closest man in the yellow and blue robes of the Obliviation Squad uniform.

The man paused for a moment and then cast a different spell only at Hermione. He then rushed up to their car.

"Right. I am going to tag the three of you so no one else gets a tricky wand hand. There are signs of massive amounts of accidental magic in that mess," he said, pointing to the now foam-covered, wet wreckage. "Do you know who it might have been?" he asked.

"It was my best friend, Harry Potter. He was in his Uncle's car with his aunt and cousin," Hermione said, realizing that, at the very least, three possibly not-so-nice people were dead, but they didn't deserve THAT! Dan saw the signs and scooped his precious little girl up just as the water works got turned on to the "wet jacket, wet shirt and wet undershirt" setting.

Hermione was crying for all she was worth.

The obliviator tried comforting Hermione. "There, there now, little one. Your friend is going to be okay. Tell you what," the man looked at Dan and loudly whispered, "Do you know where St Mungo's is, sir?"

Dan nodded.

"Right. Well let me repair your car and get you out of here. Since this little cutie," he said, his attention turning to Hermione for a moment, "is a good friend..."

"My BEST friend!" Hermione interrupted tearfully.

"Yes, well, is his best friend, we're going to take him to St Mungo's to get him checked out, magical exhaustion and all that, and he's likely going to need a place to stay for the summer if his family were in that," he said, again gesturing at the wreckage,

"That would be a good idea, wouldn't it, Kitten?" Dan asked Hermione, rubbing noses with her.

The obliviator looked around and saw his team members working their way towards the wreckage, altering the memories of the people they passed as they moved forward. He then began quietly repairing Dan's BMW. He may have overpowered the spells a bit much because the car looked like it had just come off the showroom lot when he was done.

"Okay, sir. If you and the family would step back into your car and get turned around and take the next bypass, you'll be straight into London," the obliviator said.

"The next bypass goes to Paddington," Dan said, looking at the obliviator with a quizzical expression on his face.

"No wonder I always get lost bicycling," the obliviator mumbled. "Well, lets just get you turned around and back towards London," he said.

Considering the oncoming traffic was completely blocked by emergency services, it was trivial to get turned around and the time it took them to get to St Mungos was relatively short.

-oOoOo-

When Petunia died, the wards at Number Four Privet Drive began decaying at an accelerated rate, collapsing completely within an hour of Petunia's death.

By the time they fell and the sensitive silver and platinum instruments in the headmaster's office, which were tied to the blood wards, were sounding their alarm, the headmaster had already left for a well-deserved week off.

Three days after the wards collapsed, the magic in the instruments was exhausted. They remained silent when the headmaster returned and it was another week before he checked them. Harry Potter was missing.

-oOoOo-

Harry sat in his bubble of yellow light for fifty two minutes before he could hear a voice which seemed to be directed specifically at him.

By this time, Harry had taken Hedwig out of her cage, removed the small container of owl treats from the drawer at the bottom of the cage and was generally trying to ponder the results of the limited experimentation he had done.

When Harry had attempted to push against the shield bubble, as he now referred to it, his hand had met firm resistance and the shield bubble was slightly warm to the touch.

When he had attempted to shove the remains of Hedwig's cage through the shield bubble, at first there had been a slight resistance, but as he applied more pressure, the cage pushed through and the shield bubble seemed to brighten where the cage pushed through. As he was pushing the cage with his arm, he had felt a slight increase on the force pushing against his magic.

When he pulled the cage back from the shield, the force seemingly pushing on his magic lessened, however, the bit of the cage he had pushed through was now gone. It was almost as if the shield had been consuming the cage.

"You're safe now, Lad. Unclench your magic so we can get done with this and get you to safety," Harry heard in a muffled voice. He waited a few moments and he could hear the voice talking to him again.

"There's a cute, little, brown-haired girl waiting for you at St. Mungo's but we need you to unclench your magic so we can get you out of there and get you to St Mungo's." the voice said.

Harry looked at Hedwig. "What do you think I should do, girl?" he asked the bird half-seriously.

Hedwig looked at Harry and hooted then spread her wings a bit as if to indicate she wanted to fly.

"Come on, Lad. We're holding up the muggles and I know that little girl said you were her best friend. Come on. Be a good lad and unclench your magic," the muffled voice said, sounding frustrated.

Harry closed his eyes and searched for the pressure in his magic he now felt only slightly. He spent a minute or two looking for it until he seemed to sense it. The image that popped into his head was that of a garden hose with a trickle of water flowing out of it. He imagined turning the valve to turn it off.

At the sudden, significant increase in noise, he opened his eyes to see Hedwig take off in flight. He was sitting in the remains of the car seat which now seemed to be partially embedded in a block of badly twisted metal.

"Oh thank Merlin!" a man in a yellow and blue robe exclaimed, looking at Harry. There were three men and one woman standing there as well in blue and yellow robes and two men in red robes.

The man who had spoken looked at Harry. "Let's get you out of there and off to St Mungo's," he said with a smile and reached a hand in to Harry.

Harry looked around the area he was now standing. There was bits and pieces of metal scattered all around. All of it was blackened and charred. The road itself had melted away in places. There was no sign of his aunt, uncle or cousin.

"Where's Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley?" he asked of the man in the blue and yellow robe.

"Don't you worry about them, Lad. My name is Malcolm. Come on out of there now. We just need to get you to St. Mungo's to get you checked. Have you ever apparated before?" the man asked.

"I don't think so, sir," Harry said nervously.

"Well, not a problem. Just close your eyes and we'll be there in a wink," the man said.

"Wait sir. My wand and my father's cloak, all of my Hogwarts belongings were in my trunk," Harry said, looking back at the wreckage he had stepped from.

The obliviator looked back at the wreckage and then at his team. "Can you lot see if anything of the boy's trunk made it through? I am going to go ahead and take him to St. Mungo's," he said.

The woman in the yellow and blue robes looked at Harry. "I'll see if I can find anything, Malcolm. Get going before you have to carry him," she said.

Malcolm looked down at Harry. "Shall we go then? Tanya will look after your trunk for you and bring it to St Mungo's when she finds it," he said.

Harry just nodded. "Right. Hold on tightly to my arm and close your eyes," Malcolm said with a smile.

Harry did as he was asked. He felt pressure against his magic again, but this time it was different. This seemed to be embracing his magic as opposed to attacking it. The noise level became considerably quieter, the smell of ozone, petrol and smoke was gone and the light level changed. Harry opened his eyes.

"See. That wasn't so bad," Malcolm said, a bit of surprise in his voice.

"Where are we?" Harry asked, looking around. The room was brightly lit, the walls were a subdued but bright pastel blue. There were various people behind a counter dressed in white or blue robes. On the other side of the room there were what appeared to be comfortable chairs with a few people sitting in them.

"We're at St Mungo's to get you looked after, Lad. We want to make sure you're not hurt," Malcolm said, looking down at Harry with a friendly smile.

Malcolm led him up to the counter where a young woman dressed in white greeted them. "Obliviator Jacobs, how are you doing today?" she asked then looked down at Harry. "And who is this handsome young boy?"

"I'm doing well, Miss Martins," he said then leaned in to whisper to the mediwitch. "This is..." Malcolm was about to say when everyone turned at a shout.

"HARRY!" Harry heard and turned just in time to be impacted by a brown-haired missile. He tensed until he realised who it was.

"Hermione!" he exclaimed as the air was about crushed out of his lungs, his arms pinned to his sides.

Hermione had tears freely running down her face. "I was so worried about you! Are you okay? Are you hurt at all?" she said in one breath, overwhelmed that her friend was safe and alive.

Dan and Emma had followed Hermione at a more sedate pace and were now standing behind her with enough distance so Harry wouldn't feel trapped by them.

"Give him some air, Kitten, so he can answer you," Dan said gently with a reassuring smile.

Hermione released Harry from the hug and wiped the tears from her face. "Look at me. I must be a right mess," she said.

Harry smiled. "No, you're very pretty, Hermione," he said. She beamed at him and hugged him once more. "_It feels so nice when she does that. I feel safe with her arms around me. I wonder if she'd want me to put my arms around her?"_

Hermione had her eyes closed as she hugged Harry. "_I so wish he would hug me back. Maybe I can be the one to teach him how to hug! Yes! Now all I need to do is talk Mum and Daddy into Harry staying with us this summer. Daddy's going to be the tough one,"_ she thought.

Harry suddenly felt something rushing towards him from all sides. It felt enormous, as if all of the air in the surrounding city was coming at him as if he were a giant vacuum cleaner. And then he felt as if he was full but whatever it was still came at him.

More and more.

Even though Hermione's arms were wrapped around him, he felt as if he was vibrating with the inrush. After a few moments, he felt as if he was about to burst with all of this whatever it was. He knew he couldn't take much more.

"_Don't let it hurt Hermione or her parents,_" was his last thought as everything went black.

Malcolm was about to interrupt to see if Harry wanted his friends to join him in the examination room when Harry suddenly collapsed with a pulse of white light coming from him, momentarily blinding anyone looking at him.

The wards at Privet Drive had fallen.

-oOoOo-

A gong sounded loudly in Elector Ironclaw's office. He looked at the wall of gongs and noted with surprise and anticipation the name engraved on the one which had just sounded.

The Potter heir was finally locatable using Goblin magic!

Ironclaw was very familiar with the account but followed procedure and opened a drawer to review the file on House Potter. The previous Lord of the House had been killed in 1981 and the heir apparent had disappeared within an hour of the Lord's passing.

Since his disappearance, Gringott's had been unable to find young Harry because he had been hidden from foreign magics.

When Harry had come to Gringott's the prior year, the teller failed to notify his superior immediately as per policy, so the Most Valued Client account manager had missed the opportunity to meet with Harry to execute the Late Lord's will and carry out the rites of succession.

The teller's disciplinary action had been carried out in front of a gathering of all tellers in the London branch to ensure there would never be a mistake of this magnitude made again.

Ironclaw began composing the instructions to the MVC account manager and others within Gringott's who were responsible or had interest in House Potter, communicating to them that Harry Potter had appeared on their locators showing him at St Mungo's in the children's ward.

-oOoOo-

Hermione blinked several times to try to clear the spots before her eyes. Although her eyes had been closed, her vision was still a bit dazzled. She was still holding on to Harry but his falling had pulled her to the floor as well. She moved to a sitting position and cradled Harry's head in her lap.

Dan had been five metres from Hermione and Harry and had watched the boy's closed eye indecision while Hermione had hugged him. Then suddenly everything was white and then black. His vision slowly returned to normal so he was not panicking. Yet.

Emma had been about to give Dan a hug when Dan's eyes, face, hair and the wall behind him suddenly became very brightly lit. His pupils contracted to pinpoints.

She turned around just in time to see Harry bonelessly fall to the floor, pulling Hermione with him. She looked around the room and noticed several people appeared to be crouching with their wands drawn.

Interestingly, five of these were wearing the red robes of the magical policemen and two of them wore the yellow and blue robes of the man who had fixed Dan's car. She noted Harry was the only one in the entire room to have collapsed.

"Gentlemen," Emma said in a normal tone of voice. All seven crouching men pointed their wands at her. "If you will close your eyes, but not tightly, and count to one hundred, your vision should improve," she explained, realising the likely cause of Dan's rapidly contracting pupils.

Dan had, of course, already closed his eyes, knowing that rubbing them would only exacerbate the issue. All seven of the men closed their eyes, two of them counting aloud.

Eventually all seven stood up and put their wands away. Malcolm being one of the last as he had been looking directly at Harry as well. Once his vision returned to normal he looked about and saw that Harry had collapsed.

"BONNIE!" Malcolm shouted.

The mediwitch ran over to where Hermione sat on the floor cradling Harry's head. Bonnie was already casting diagnostic spells on Harry, Hermione watching her and listening to the incantations. Hermione noticed Bonnie casting the same spell twice and then a third time.

"Excuse me, Miss," Hermione said, "what does casting that spell multiple times do?" she asked.

Bonnie looked at Hermione and smiled. "You're a bright girl. I had never seen the results of that spell indicate what it was indicating, so I cast it a second time and a third time to make certain I had cast it correctly," she said.

She stood and looked at Malcolm. "Malcolm, could you pick the boy up and carry him. I don't want any stray magic around him while he's recuperating." She then looked down at Hermione as Malcolm gently wrapped Harry in his arms and lifted him.

Bonnie offered her hand to Hermione, who accepted the assistance in standing. "Now, would you and your parents," she said turning her attention to Dan and Emma, "like to stay with him for a bit?"

Hermione, too, looked to her parents. "_Oh please! Please! PLEASE!"_ her look said to Dan.

"Why don't we let them get him situated in his bed, Kitten, and then we can go in and see him," Dan said.

Hermione hugged Dan. "Daddy! You're the best!" she said.

Bonnie smiled at the interchange. "He should be resting comfortably in a few minutes. I need to look after getting some potions ordered for him but once that is done I shall come straight back here to take you to see him," she said earnestly to Hermione.

Hermione nodded and a quiet, "Thank you, Miss," could be heard.

Bonnie went back to the desk and wrote down the potions she felt Harry needed as well as her findings on the parchment she had started. A house elf appeared and Bonnie gave him a copy of the list of potions she wanted for Harry.

"**Patient shows signs of malnourishment, physical abuse and other signs of parental magical suppression. Unusual readings when measuring core strength; core appears to be significantly under-developed but is growing at an unusually fast rate: greater than one percent per hour; core recharging at more than eight times normal rate for child of this presumed age**," she wrote.

She then wrote something that was certain to get the Department of Magical Law Enforcement involved even if the abuse didn't.

"**Child appears to have suffered significant, long-term drain of ****magical core not associated with hysterical magical response. Child appears to be maintaining a leeching curse of significant magnitude originating from beneath curse scar on the right forehead; recommend follow-up with Unspeakables to determine counter curse and removal strategy**."

Bonnie then walked over to the senior auror and asked him to read her last notation. The auror read her preliminary report.

Anyone looking at the auror could see the anger apparent on his face. He looked at the name of the patient and his face contorted even further, turning red.

"I'm contacting Director Bones," he said, looking at Bonnie, handing the report back to her. She nodded and then turned to Hermione and her parents, who had followed this interaction with curiosity. The auror headed to the floo.

"Shall I take you to look in on your friend?" she asked with a smile.

Hermione smiled. "Yes, please!"

Bonnie led Hermione, Dan and Emma down a corridor with rooms on either side. She came to a closed door and entered. Harry was laying on the bed in the room with a sheet covering him. Malcolm was sitting in the only chair in the room reading the Daily Prophet. He stood as the four entered the room.

"Thank you, Malcolm," Bonnie said with a smile as she hung the parchment board on the hook attached to the foot board of the bed. "Let's get your report finished up at the desk." She and Malcolm left the room.

Dan sat in the chair and watched the interaction between Hermione and the unconscious boy in the bed.

Emma waited until the door closed and looked at the parchment board Bonnie had left behind.

Hermione stood at the bed and held Harry's hand in her hands. She began quietly talking to him, telling him how she had worried about him and how much his friendship meant to her. Dan's ears particularly perked up when he heard "troll" and "nearly killed me."

Emma removed the parchment board from the hook and handed it to Dan. She had also been listening to Hermione's quiet, one-sided conversation.

Dan read the report then read it again. He then handed it back to Emma, a grim look on his face.

Emma placed the board back on the hook and moved to stand behind Hermione, who was still chatting softly with Harry, telling him about various instances of accidental magic she had performed before getting the letter from Hogwarts.

Although Dan had picked up on Hermione's emotional state because he had been focusing primarily on her, Emma was somewhat surprised when she put her hands gently on Hermione's shoulder, Hermione had looked up with tears streaks down her face and was still crying.

"What ever is the matter, Honey?" Emma asked. Hermione turned and desperately held onto her mother.

"Is he going to be better? Please tell me he'll wake up soon. He's...he...I don't know what I'll do without Harry!" she said, but buried her face into Emma.

Emma could feel the sobs Hermione was experiencing. Dan stood and then knelt down next to his little girl. "Kitten, Harry's..." his thought was interrupted by Hermione moving like lightning, grabbing his neck and crying into his shoulder.

"Daddy!" Hermione cried out.

Whether it was a character flaw or simply something in his emotional construction, Dan never could say no to Hermione when she was crying. He understood about every third word she was saying.

"Harry...wake...up? Harry...get...better?" was about as coherent as he could understand.

"Oh Kitten. Who was it that killed a troll to protect you?" he asked and gave her a little squeeze.

She continued to cry but the shoulder-shaking sobs ended.

"Who was it that kept going when you couldn't go with him?" he gently prodded.

Her crying lessened again and her arms relaxed the hug but didn't release it.

"Who was it that lived through staying with those awful, awful people?" he asked.

Hermione pushed away from the hug but kept her hands on Dan's shoulders and looked into his eyes. Her crying had stopped and she had a slightly betrayed look on her face.

"Daddy! That was a private conversation between Harry and I," she said, a little indignantly.

"That may be, Kitten, but I won't forget the answers to those questions. Who is it that, in your words, 'constantly beats the odds' and always makes it back?" Dan asked gently.

Hermione got a shy, embarrassed look on her face. "Harrrrrry," she said, drawing it out.

"That's right, Kitten. I am not going to lie to you and tell you he is going to be just fine when he wakes up," he said, pausing to look her in the eye, "What I will tell you is that Harry is clearly a fighter. A survivor. No matter what, I have my very highest hopes that he will wake up and want his best friend here when he does.

Hermione now wore an ear-to-ear smile as she wiped the remaining, unshed tears from her eyes, just as the mediwitch walked back into the room with five goblins, four of whom were carrying swords in scabbards on their belts. All of them wore goblin-sized plate mail sans helmets.

The one without a sword looked at the three occupants of the room who were not in the bed. "Who are you and what business do you have here?" he demanded.

Dan was about to speak when the goblin cut him off.

"Not you, Muggle. He stood within arms reach of Hermione and looked at her. "What is your business with our client?" he asked Hermione.

"Harry is my best friend and when we saw what happened..." she began but was cut off by the goblin.

"You witnessed this accident which befell our client?" he asked, reaching into a pouch dangling from his armour and removing what appeared to be a cricket-ball sized ruby.

He tapped on it twice with his finger and it floated up into the center of the room and began glowing with a warm, inviting light which illuminated the walls from all of its surfaces.

Hermione looked at the now-floating gem with some trepidation but could not take her eyes from the gem.

"Yes, I witnessed some of the accident. My Daddy saw the whole thing!" she said.

"I was scared that something had happened to My...to Harry and then there was an explosion and Daddy pushed us all down and then the rescue people came and put out the fire and then the ministry people came and almost erased my parents' memory and then they found Harry and the obliviator, Malcolm, fixed Daddy's car and then we came here and I saw Harry out front and hugged him and then he fell down and now we're in here," Hermione finished, and was able to look down at the image the gem had been projecting.

Emma had been watching the, for lack of a better word, movie playing beneath the gem as Hermione spoke. While Hermione had left out various things likely she had not seen, what she had just watched was a nearly perfect motion picture of what had happened, including a few things that she knew neither Hermione nor her had seen. The device must, she thought, be gathering the information from Dan and me as well.

"And Harry Potter is your best friend?" the goblin asked.

Hermione once more felt compelled to look up at the gem.

"Harry Potter is my best friend," she began and continued to tell of nearly every interaction she had with Harry from the first moment on the Express when she had been looking for Trevor, Neville Longbottom's toad, until a few moments ago when she had spoken with her father about Harry recovering.

The picture had jumped from time to time, and it did take her some time to talk, but Emma and Dan had their eyes watching the projection the gem created, taking special note of Harry killing the troll, the detention in the forbidden forest, Harry and Hermione's interactions with Draco Malfoy, Hermione's frustration with Ron on many occasions and many other interactions.

"...and then Harry fainted and the mediwitch was kind enough to let us stay with Harry in this room and I told Harry all the things I hadn't told him before about me," Hermione said.

Although the expression on the goblin's face was frightening Emma and was making Dan think he was going to pull Hermione behind him to protect her from this goblin who looked about to eat her, Bonnie the mediwitch had a small smile on her face.

It was clear, when he spoke next, the goblin was pleased. He spoke now to Dan and Emma.

"It is a pleasant experience we so rarely have to speak with a wizard or witch who is completely honest in their dealings with The People. This speaks well to your child rearing skills and your character. It is unfortunate you do not have magic of your own," the goblin said, his expression returning to the normal goblin sneer.

He then looked down and towards the guards standing on his left.

"Gutripper, Skullstomper, you two are to remain with our client at all times. Should anyone attempt to harm him in any way, you are to take appropriate action in accordance with our treaty with the wizards to see our client remains safe," he ordered.

The two goblins crossed their chest with one arm in acknowledgement.

"These three," the goblin said, gesturing towards Dan, Emma and Hermione, "are allowed to come and go as they please after they have been tested for polyjuice and magical coersion. The same is true of this mediwitch and Healer Simmons and Healer Jones. No one else is permitted in this room without my express permission per our current treaty," the goblin finished.

He then looked back at Hermione and gave her a slight bow, which Hermione returned, not knowing any better. While the goblin had the same expression on his face now that Dan had been concerned with earlier, he now believed it was the goblin equivalent of a smile.

"I will be leaving Firmgrip and Fleshrend outside the door," the other two crossed their chest with one arm, "to ensure our client isn't unnecessarily disturbed," the goblin said.

Dan looked at the goblin. "Thank you for protecting Harry with your warriors," he said formally.

The goblin had that look again and shook his head slightly, then laughed for a moment before composing himself once more. "Sir, the Goblin Nation has no military. These four are merely security guards from Gringott's," the goblin said.

"That's right, Daddy. The treaty of seventeen forty-two specifically prevents the Goblin Nation from having a standing militia. The amendment to that treaty signed in seventeen forty three specifically allows the Goblin Nation to..." Hermione thought for a moment to get the precise wording, "...train and employ sufficient security guards to protect wizarding deposits, materials and persons to ensure no harm or foul happens to the same or the rightful owners thereof," she said with a small smile.

She then turned to the goblin who had been doing all of the speaking. "Excuse me, Sir, but if it isn't considered rude, may I ask your name?" Hermione asked.

"Goblins do not consider such questions rude," he said, meaning questions of honest, friendly curiosity. "My name is Steelfist," he said.

"And you're a security guard?" Emma asked. This question brought another goblin smile to Steelfist's face.

"No, Miss. I am actually an account manager for Gringott's Most Valuable Clients," he answered proudly. "Now, I really must be going. I do believe it has been many years since I have had an enjoyable meeting of equals. Thank you," Steelfist said then once more gave Hermione a slight bow which she returned in kind.

Steelfist snapped his fingers and the large ruby floated down to his hand. He placed it in the pouch he had removed it from and left the room. The two guards remaining in the room saluted him as he left then stood once more at parade rest when the door closed.

"Well, that was interesting," Emma said.

"And informative," Dan said, looking at Hermione. "Tell me, Kitten, why didn't you ever tell your Mum or me about this troll business? Or this Draco boy?"

Hermione had the good grace to blush.

-oOoOo-

Harry was running through the corridors of Hogwarts. Instead of being illuminated brightly by torches along the walls, the corridor was dimly lit by the faces of people in alcoves.

Many of the faces he did not recognize. He slowed and looked at the faces.

There was Gregory Goyle from Slytherin, one of Draco's henchmen. The next was Vincent Crabbe, Draco's other henchman. The next was Draco Malfoy himself, Harry's nemesis.

Draco had a haughty expression on his face and was the first to speak to him.

"Where's your little muggleborn now, Potter? Your filthy little whore gotten herself lost?"

Draco's words faded out as he continued down the hall.

He then ran past Dudley who seemed to be normal until he slid into the corridor as a splash of blood and bone, lighting the corridor red, then reforming as the fat boy only to melt into a puddle of gore again.

Harry turned and ran down the corridor.

He passed Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. Aunt Petunia would fade to black while Uncle Vernon was yelling silently at him, turning purple until he exploded into a cloud of red mist.

Harry dived down the hallway as a lorry came out of the alcove Uncle Vernon had been in, only to crash through the alcove Aunt Petunia was standing in. Harry picked himself up and continued running down the hall.

Professor Quarrel was standing in the middle of the corridor, slowly spinning in place, alternating between being a stuttering coward to being Voldemort's slit-nosed face yelling curses.

As Harry ran past it his hands reached out on their own and he dragged the burning, pleading body of Professor Quarrel until he disintegrated into a trail of ash.

Harry ran on.

The hallway seemed to be getting brighter as he turned a corner. The first person he saw was Professor Snape who yelled, "Fifty points from Gryffindor for running in the halls, Potter!" but his voice, too, faded as he continued running.

All of the other teachers were there as well, the last being Headmaster Dumbledore, who offered him a lemon drop.

He knew he was nearing the end of the hall because his parents were waiting for him, smiling and standing proudly. He began walking towards them. "We're so proud of you, Harry," his father said as his mother knelt down and hugged him. He returned the hug with a fierceness to rival Hermione.

"I wish you could stay here, Harry. But you have to keep going. We'll wait for you when it is your time, but your life has just started. Your life is still yet ahead of you. Know we both love you," His mother said, releasing her hug and standing again.

Harry found he could not talk. "_I want to stay here with you! There's nothing for me there!" _he thought as loudly as he could.

"Harry, there is so much for you in the living world. It's all in front of you," his father said. His parents were now standing in the middle of the corridor. They stepped aside and he saw a bright light glowing down the hall.

"Go to your future, Son. Know we are both prouder than we can say," his mother said.

He walked numbly between them, not wanting to leave them behind.

"We'll always be there for you, Harry," he heard his father voice say, fading into the background.

He shielded his eyes from the light ahead of him. It was so bright. And yet it was welcoming. As he approached, the light became warm and the glaring quality of it faded to soft illumination.

In front of him was a man, a woman and, standing between them with her arms out, Hermione with Hedwig perched upon her shoulder. Seeming to stand in front of Hermione was a shorter, blonde girl who he had never seen before.

He ran to get to Hermione's arms.

To be hugged by her.

But she and her parents seemed to slide away as he ran.

He could hear a whisper but it faded with the rushing of the air past his ears. He slowed but still could not make out the words. Finally, he stopped and closed his eyes and waited until the pounding of his chest and the rapid breathing slowed to a rest.

"Harry, call out my name and you will be with me," he heard. "Call to me, Harry. There is so much I need to tell you. There's so much I want you to know. Call out my name."

"Hermione?" he asked quietly but a fierce wind blew down the corridor as he spoke.

"Harry! Call out my name!" she shouted, but it sounded as if she was very far away. Harry opened his eyes and he could see she was much further away and the light was dimming. He could see her reaching for him, her parents trying to help hold her in place so she wouldn't drift further away.

"HERMIONE!" he shouted for all he was worth.

-oOoOo-

"HERMIONE!" Harry shouted and sat up in bed.

It was dark.

Harry suddenly had a sleepy, hysterical witch holding on to him for dear life. He wrapped his arms around her and bodily pulled her into the bed with him and held her. "I thought that I had lost you, Hermione," he whispered, his voice filled with emotion, tears running down his cheeks.

The door to the room opened and they heard "Lumos" and the light in the room became brighter. A woman Harry had never seen walked into the room. She looked at Harry and Hermione holding one another and, instead of the shouting he expected, the woman's face grew a smile. Harry took a moment to look around the room and noticed Hermione's parents were also here. Her mother had a smile to match this new woman and Dan smiled as well, but it had a quality of tightness to it.

There were also two armor-clad goblins in the room who were in the process of sheathing their swords.

"Well, young man, welcome back. You gave us a bit of a scare, I can tell you," the woman said as she sat down on the bed and rubbed circles in Hermione's back just above where Harry's arms were wrapped around her.

Feeling a bit self-conscious, he began to take his arms from around Hermione, but she was having none of that. "Hold me, Harry," Hermione said in a frightened soft voice. Harry wrapped his arms around her again and Hermione snuggled into him tighter. "I was so worried about you, Harry," she whispered into his ear, relishing in the feel of his arms wrapped around her.

"There there, Hermione. He's back with us now," the woman soothed, then turned her attention to Harry. "You may not remember me, Mr. Potter, but you may call me Bonnie and I am here to check on you now that you've awoken," she explained before she turned her attention back to Hermione and softened her voice, "and I can't do that while Miss Granger is wrapped around you."

Hermione relaxed her hug and looked up at Bonnie with a guilty look. "I'm sorry, it's just..." she said.

"I know, Dear. Now why don't you go wait on your father's lap while I check on Harry," Bonnie suggested.

Hermione nodded and wiped her eyes. She then realised where she was laying.

In bed.

With Harry.

She looked at her Mum, who was smiling at her, a tear leaking down her face here and there and then looked over at her father.

When she looked at him, he raised his eyebrow at her then smiled and opened his arms.

She climbed down from the bed and walked over and sat on Dan's knee. He wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "it's okay, Kitten. I am not upset with you. I am happy your friend has woken up."

He then kissed her on her cheek as she reclined against him and rested her head against his.

Emma sat down on Dan's other knee and kissed her then kissed Dan and watched as the mediwitch cast diagnostic spells on Harry.

"Now let's see what we have," Bonnie said and waved her wand over and around Harry, who was now sitting up in bed again. She cast a few more spells and then looked thoughtfully at Harry.

"May I call you Harry?" Bonnie asked. Harry simply nodded.

"Harry, do you know where you are?" she asked.

Harry thought for a moment. "I remember a man in yellow and blue robes..." he paused, then looked over at Hermione, sitting with her mum and dad. When she saw he was looking, her smile lit his world.

"I remember a hallway and running and my mum and dad telling me to keep going and then I ran to Hermione," he said, tears flowing once more. He looked over at the three of them just to make sure they were still there.

"But you don't remember where you are at or what happened?" she asked, her smile just a bit smaller, Harry noticed.

He shook his head then remembered, "Wait. Malcolm...Malcolm told me he was taking me to St Mungo's," Harry said with uncertainty.

Bonnie nodded at him.

"I remember someone named Tanya," Harry looked out the window, trying to remember. He looked back with a smile suddenly. "She was going to bring me my trunk with my wand and my Dad's cloak!" he exclaimed happily.

Bonnie turned her head and looked at the goblins standing at the door.

One of them nodded to her and she turned back to Harry.

"Well, it seems she brought them to some friends of yours for safe keeping until you are well enough to leave here," she said, her smile returning in full force, putting Harry's mind more at ease. "Do you remember anything else, Harry?"

Harry looked out the window once more. Bonnie looked at him with some concern.

Suddenly there was a soft chime that sounded in the room. Harry looked at Bonnie and Bonnie looked at the goblins.

"Please have him wait outside until I ask him to come in. I need to ensure our patient is well," she said in a tone that indicated she would broach no argument.

One of the goblins opened the door and left.

Bonnie turned back to Harry who was looking at her, tears running down his face. "What's wrong, Harry?"

"I had to grab Hedwig! It was too quick!" He had remembered seeing the lorry and thinking of his owl.

"It's not your fault, Harry," Bonnie said soothingly.

Harry was hysterical. "But it was! He called Hermione a...and I yelled at him. He turned his head and then the headlights and I grabbed Hedwig and...!" his words became incoherent. Bonnie reached over and held him. He wrapped his arms around her and desperately held her.

"Harry. It wasn't your fault. None of it was your fault. It was an accident," Bonnie said to him and looked at Hermione, Dan and Emma. To Emma, she gave an additional look and gestured ever so slightly with her head indicating Emma should trade places with her.

Emma walked over to the bed, followed by Hermione and Dan. Emma sat on the other side of Harry and pulled him to her. Harry let go of Bonnie and wrapped his arms around Emma and continued to cry.

Bonnie stood and looked at the desperate embrace as Harry held Emma.

Emma's heart was breaking for this boy who had been through so much.

"Harry, shhhhhh. Harry, it isn't your fault. No matter what you think. No matter what you remember. Their passing wasn't caused by what you did." She held him as Hermione sat where Bonnie had been sitting and hugged Harry as well. Dan motioned for Bonnie to follow him out of the room.

As the door closed, Dan wheeled on Bonnie and looked at her questioningly. "Miss Martins..."

"Please, Mr. Granger. Call me Bonnie," she said.

Dan nodded. "Please call me Dan." Bonnie nodded.

"What is going to happen to him now? From everything Hermione has told us, his home life before the accident was not a good one and it would seem he has no other living family," Dan said, his anxiety about Harry's future clear in his voice.

Bonnie was about to speak when another voice intruded.

"That, Mr. Granger, is my responsibility," Dan heard.

He turned around and was surprised at what he saw. Looking at Dan from five metres away was a goblin dressed in what appeared to be an extremely fine seventeenth century suit, complete with monocle.

The goblin closed the distance and offered his hand to shake. Dan reached out to shake the goblin's hand and instead found his wrist being gripped, which he likewise did to the goblin.

"I am Elector Ironclaw and the heir to House Potter is now my responsibility by treaty with the Crown." Ironclaw looked to Bonnie. "I see you are the mediwitch Steelfist trusts with the care of our charge. How is the Potter heir doing, Miss Martins?"

Bonnie looked a bit frightened. "Sir, I am not... That is... I would think someone of your stature would rather be speaking with the Director of the Hospital," she said, clearly unsure of herself.

"Miss Martins, let me assure you that I have already spoken with Director Wilkins and explained to him his responsibilities as outlined by the treaty," Ironclaw's face twisted into a feral grin.

"Needless to say, the Director saw fit to provide me any resource I need to ensure the Potter heir is properly taken care of, up to and including burning this building to the ground with everyone in it, if it would ensure the safety of our charge."

He then leaned in and whispered loudly enough for Bonnie and Dan to hear him, "Not that we would do that. Bad for business, you know, but your Director was being a bit thick," Ironclaw laughed for a moment.

"Now that we've set expectations, how is your patient, Miss Martins," Ironclaw asked again.

Bonnie looked at him and smiled.

She hadn't liked Wilkins since he pinched her on the bum during her interview.

She spoke in conversational tones. "Harry is awake. Previously his magical core had been unusually small for a boy his age but was growing rather rapidly. It is now nearly the size it should be but is still not slowed in its growth."

"His core has nearly fully recharged and it looks as if his core is going to remain full, unless he casts hysterical magic again, until his core stops growing."

"He is malnourished but now that he is awake, I am planning to give him some potions to help offset some of the conditions caused by the malnourishment."

"He has a curse scar on his forehead which has a leeching curse behind it which draws magic from him. I suspect this is the reason his core is so small. It leeches more than half his magic from him."

"There also seemed to be some other curse or spell which is no longer affecting him, but has been affecting him for some time. Based on the events from four days ago, when he came in, whatever curse or spell it was seems to have been tied to one or more members of his now-deceased guardians," she said clinically.

"He also has several old injuries which were never healed correctly, including an incorrectly set broken right femur, all three bones in his left arm. His right arm being forcibly removed from its socket and forcibly restored to its proper place."

"His teeth will need extensive work as it appears no one has ever examined or restored them. He was not provided with a restorative drought to repair his eyes. It is not clear if he is allergic to the ingredients or if it was never given."

"We also need to set up a dietary regimen for him so that he is getting enough calories for his body to begin building itself properly."

"Is my client aware of any of this information?" Ironclaw asked.

"Not as such. I am certain he is aware of the causes of some of his injuries, but not that we know about all of them. We wanted to make certain he has recovered from his magical drain and any physical injuries caused by the accident," she said.

"And what are the results of those tests?" Ironclaw asked.

"I have not had the time to complete those tests yet as our mutual charge is somewhat emotional at the moment and is being reassured the tragic event which caused his current situation is not his fault," Bonnie said with the force of a lioness.

Ironclaw held his hands in front of him in a remarkably human gesture. "Now, now Miss Martins. The boy's emotional health is just as, if not more important than, his physical and magical health. The more powerful an individual is, the more truth there is to this and I suspect our charge will be powerful in realms outside of the financial holdings we manage for him," Ironclaw said.

"I will give you a few more minutes with him, Miss Martins. If, Mr. Granger, I could take some of your time to discuss the topic you originally raised?" Ironclaw looked at Dan and raised his eyebrow in a very un-goblin fashion. Dan nodded.

"Thank you, Bonnie, for taking such good care of Harry," Dan said sincerely to Bonnie. As she opened the door she nodded and closed the door behind her.

"Now then, Mr Granger, I have the authority to negotiate and approve business contracts for my clients," Ironclaw said with a goblin smile.

-oOoOo-

Harry had stopped crying and was just sitting between Emma and Hermione as Bonnie walked back into the room. "Excuse me, Hermione, could you go sit in the chair while I check on Harry? Your magic would throw off my readings," Bonnie said nicely to Hermione with a smile.

"Harry, I will be right over there," she said, looking at Harry and pointing to the chair. She then gave Harry a quick kiss on the cheek and backed over to the chair, never taking her eyes from Harry.

Harry looked up at Bonnie. "Now Harry, I am going to be checking some things we found were different than they normally are and I need to check you to be certain of those things? Okay?" Bonnie asked.

Harry smiled and nodded at her.

"Okay. Here goes," she said and began waving her wand around and chanting. Every time her wand neared Emma, the readings would get thrown off. After the fourth time of this happening, she ran her wand over Emma and when it got in proximity of her lower abdomen, Bonnie smiled. "Mrs Granger, could you please go sit with Hermione? Is that okay, Harry?"

Emma looked at Bonnie quizzically, seeing her little smile. When she sat down in the chair and held Hermione on her lap, the two chatted softly, but neither of them let their eyes leave Harry.

Harry nodded and looked at Hermione happily sitting on her mum's lap. Bonnie continued to run her wand over Harry, and she still had a small smile on her face. Harry glanced up at Bonnie and saw her smile was different somehow. He asked her quietly, "Bonnie, why are you smiling? Is it because I am doing better?"

She looked down at Harry then her smile bloomed as she leaned down and whispered something into Harry's ear. Harry listened and could not believe it. "Really?" he asked loudly.

Smile still in place, Bonnie nodded, "For real and for true!" she exclaimed right back.

"That's...that's...that's...Amazing!" Harry said. Then he looked at Bonnie conspiratorially, "Can I be the one who tells them? Please?" Harry whispered loudly.

"That sounds like the right way to do it, Harry," Bonnie said then got a sombre look on her face for a moment. _"This boy has been through the worst barbs, thorns and thistles this world can throw at him and he is happily excited to be allowed to give happy news. It feels as if I have just handed him the world and all he wants to do with it is good," _she thought.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" she asked the now smiling boy.

"I'm feeling well!" he said excitedly. Then his face fell and he looked on the verge of tears again.

Bonnie knelt down in front of him. "Harry, what's wrong?"

"I was going to say I felt well enough to go home, but now I have nowhere to go and no one who wants me," he said and began crying again. Emma knew her role clearly and walked over and held Harry while he cried.

Because he was crying, he did not notice Dan, Ironclaw and a woman wearing a monocle enter the room.

Dan noticed the room seemed to get larger as even with two goblin 'security guards', Emma, Hermione, the two beds the hospital had provided for Hermione, Dan and Emma, the large couch, the reading chair, Bonnie, Ironclaw and the woman he had been introduced outside as Amelia Bones, the room was still comfortable and not at all cramped.

He also noted the goblin 'security guards' had their hands on the hilts of their swords. Finally, he noticed something which had nagged at his mind earlier. Harry was hugging Emma. Harry had hugged Hermione. Harry was initiating contact.

Amelia slowly removed her wand and handed it to Elector Ironclaw.

The two goblins seemed to ease the grip on their swords.

"Ladies and gentlemen, some of you I met in the hallway, let me introduce myself to you. I am Amelia Bones, Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," she said, looking around the room until her eyes set on Harry in close proximity to Hermione.

Harry had fear in his eyes. "_She's here to take me away for killing them. I'll never see Hermione again!"_ he thought, his eyes filling with tears and his chin beginning to quiver.

"Harry, don't be upset. I am here to let you know that the DMLE is not filing any charges against you or the Grangers," Amelia said. The relief on his face was clearly evident.

"I do have some things to discuss which I, without your permission I'm sorry to say, discussed with Mr Granger here and Elector Ironclaw," Amelia said, indicating both men.

Dan had a smile for Harry. Harry had seen a goblin smile before so he was not afraid of a goblin looking like he was going to eat someone whole.

"Were you talking about Harry's best interest?" Hermione asked, standing defiantly, her wand appearing in her hand but still pointed at the floor. "Because it seems to me too many people make decisions about My...that is Harry without talking to him about it first, if ever!" she said in anger.

Amelia took no offence at either the words nor the tone. "I do have Harry's best interest at heart and the reason I apologised was because I had not consulted with him but intend to do so now. I will have no say where he goes."

"I am here, by treaty, to simply offer advice and counselling as an individual of high regard with The People and to ensure anyone who has violated any of our laws broken not specifically covered by treaty is punished appropriately."

"Let me say that, from the evidence I have at present, none of the occupants of this room at this time are suspected of having committed any such criminal act," then she got a bit of a smile on her face as she turned to Harry, "including killing a troll or a teacher possessed by a dark lord."

Harry stood up from the bed and paused to ensure he was stable. Hermione had her hand on his shoulder to give him some stability. Once he knew he was able to stand, he grabbed a hold of Hermione and gave her a hug.

"_Harry is hugging me!_" was all Hermione could think while she wrapped her arms around him, her wand disappearing up her sleeve.

All of the adults looked at the two children hugging. Emma happened to look up at Dan, who had a smile indicating he was the cat that caught the canary and Emma was waiting any minute now for him to start spitting little yellow feathers out of his mouth.

"Be that as it may, Mr Potter, we need your assistance in a decision which will have an impact on our world. We will give you the best information we have and will ask you to decide what to do. There is one caveat to this," Amelia said, "you must first agree to a ceremony called 'The Rites of Succession' after which you shall be given a ring to wear. If the rites are completed and you place the ring on your finger and you are not the heir to House Potter, you will die."

Amelia paused for a moment as Hermione put her fist in her mouth and bit down, even though a gasp escaped her. "If the ring accepts you, you become Lord Harry James Potter and all of the responsibilities that position entails. If you wish to abdicate your responsibilities, you will be given the contents of your trust vault and not another knut, sickle or galleon of yours may be taken to Gringott's."

Harry turned to the goblin who had entered the room. "Do I know you, Sir?" Harry asked.

Ironclaw looked at Harry and gave Harry a slight bow. Harry returned the bow deeper and upon standing said, "May your gold multiply."

Ironclaw was shocked but said the other half of the honorific of The People, "and may the gold of your enemies line your vaults." Ironclaw gathered himself then said, "I am Elector Ironclaw of the European vaults and branches of Gringott's. I speak with the voice of London Manager Ragnok and Guilder Gringott himself," Ironclaw stated formally.

"What is your role, Mr Ironclaw? Are you here to help me or are you here to 'protect' me?" Harry said, looking at the security guards who were clearly under Ironclaw's orders.

Ironclaw laughed. "Well played, Heir Potter. I am here to tell you that you will not die after the Rites of Succession and that the ring will recognize you and name you Lord Potter. I am here to discuss your accounts, your expanding businesses, your investments and your responsibilities, two of which have a higher priority," he said.

"I am also here to discuss your parents arrangements with Gringott's with regard to your person and your future and how your becoming Lord Potter modifies those arrangements. I am also here as a representative of Gringott's to provide you any services you may wish which are within the laws of the Ministry or the treaty between the Crown and The People."

"What do I need to do for the Rites of Succession?" Harry asked as he pictured all sorts of dangerous and lethal tasks he would have to complete in the jungle with dragons or worse harassing him

Ironclaw open the satchel he was carrying and withdrew a short knife, a silver bowl, a quill and a stack of parchment. He set these on the bedside table.

"The parchment is used to record the names of any others in the family who have claim as well as any other family line for which you have a claim. The quill has been spelled to write the names. The bowl will collect your blood. You will allow your blood to drip into the bowl until the blood in the bowl turns black. The knife is spelled to cut open the ball of your thumb without pain, Your thumb will heal, again painlessly, once the blood turns black," he explained, handing Harry the bowl, which Harry set on the bed and then Ironclaw handed Harry the knife.

"Um, sir. That is may I call you Ironclaw?" Harry asked and Ironclaw nodded. "How much blood will it take?"

"I have never seen the Rites of Succession require more than an inkwell full of blood," he said with a laugh. Then he turned to look up at Harry. "That one took four pieces of parchment and was a real mess. By the time the ring was ready to be used, most of the names on the list had died. Tragic. I suppose, since a shallow, fawning boot licker who felt the need to rise above his station was the person the ring finally accepted," Ironclaw said and just about spit on the floor.

Harry looked at Hermione and said, "Sounds like Malfoy."

"Oh? Do you know him? Complete boot licker, terribly sensitive to his place and putting others in theirs," Ironclaw said.

"We know Draco Malfoy," Harry said.

"Ah yes, the heir apparent to the Malfoy family purse," Ironclaw said then looked at Harry. "Do you want to do this, Sir?" he asked.

Harry answered by slicing the ball of his thumb unintentionally to the bone.

The knife was quite sharp. All he felt was the pressure and a bit of tingling.

The blood poured into the bowl. When the bowl was mostly full, the blood in it turned black and Harry could feel the wound seal from the bone up, as if something was knitting the wound back together.

He looked at the process and watched as the thumb healed. Once his thumb was healed, Harry carefully transferred the bowl to the bedside table.

"Now, Mr. Potter, please place the quill in the bowl and release it," Ironclaw said then whispered something to Gutripper, who left the room.

Gutripper returned when the parchment was half covered with writing. Gutripper handed Ironclaw more parchment.

Ironclaw walked up to the table where the quill was busily writing and set the stack of parchment down next to the parchment being written on. When the quill finished the first parchment, the quill rose up above the parchment, released a wave of hot air to dry and fix the blood ink.

The parchment then turned over onto a stack to the right, a blank piece of parchment came off the stack of blanks on the left and settled beneath the quill and the quill began writing again. This process continued for forty seven pages.

The quill finished dotting an 'I' before drying the last page of blood ink, flipping the parchment onto the stack and settling to lay down on the table on top of the completed stack of parchment. There was a small puff of acrid smoke which came from the bowl and the bowl was once more clean, with no trace of blood ink remaining.

"Well, that was not entirely unexpected," Ironclaw said, "although some of the names of families I read as they were being written you are not likely to achieve the head of since there are many potential heirs before you, some of the families have been without heads since before the death of Gellert Grindelwald."

Ironclaw paused for a moment in thought. He then looked up at Harry and took on a countenance which screamed formality, "Do you, Harry James Potter, of your own free will, wish to make the attempt to wear the Ring of Lordship for House Potter, knowing that if the Ring and Magic deny your bid you will be slain and knowing that if the Ring and Magic accept your bid, you freely accept the rights and responsibilities of this stations?"

Harry looked a bit confused as he stood in front of Ironclaw. Hermione leaned over and whispered, "If you want to do this, Harry, a simple 'I accept the risks of my own free will' is all you need to say. If you don't want to do it, all you need to say is 'I decline this opportunity now and for all time' but it is your decision and yours alone, Harry. You'll still be my best friend no matter how you choose," and then she kissed him on the cheek.

Harry looked at Hermione and smiled. He then looked back at Ironclaw, straightened his shoulders and said, "I accept the risks of my own free will."

Ironclaw removed the Ring of Lordship for House Potter from his satchel and placed it in Harry's left hand. Harry took the ring and looked at it, and thought of his father and his mother as he placed the overly-large ring on the ring finger of his right hand.

He could feel a pressure pushing on him, similar to the pressure during the accident, but different in that it wasn't attacking him. There was a flash of light centred on the ring as it shrank to fit Harry's finger.

"Gringott's and The People recognise Lord Harry James Potter as the rightful Lord of House Potter," Ironclaw said formally and bowed low to Harry, which Harry returned, remembering something from History of Magic and as he bowed, he splayed the fingers of his hands open to indicate he intended no harm or threat to The People and closed his eyes, indicating he trusted Elector Ironclaw to bring no harm or foul to him. Ironclaw hid his surprise well.

"The Ministry of Magic and the Crown recognise Lord Harry James Potter as the rightful Lord of House Potter," Amelia Bones said formally.

Hermione once more came to Harry's rescue as he looked lost to respond. She whispered to him, "You need to say," she paused a moment and looked at Director Bones.

"Harry, the formal response is 'I, Lord Harry James Potter, do accept the rights and responsibilities of my station with honour, strength, wisdom and courage'," Amelia said.

Harry squared his shoulders once more, feeling the weight of the words as he spoke them, " I, Lord Harry James Potter, do accept the rights and responsibilities of my station with honour, strength, wisdom and courage."

He then looked at Hermione, who was smiling at him with barely-contained excitement. The adults in the room could see that Harry's energy level was flagging and was on the verge of falling asleep again.

"Lord Potter, the remainder of the business before us," Ironclaw said, indicating the stack of parchment, "can be dealt with another day, if you so desire."

"I can be available to represent the Ministry and the Crown with reasonable advance notice," Amelia said, looking at Harry with a smile.

Harry felt a bit unsteady on his feet and yawned. "Thank you. For some reason all this sleeping has made me tired," he said with a wan smile. He looked once more at Hermione, whose smile was beaming at him when his vision went grey, hearing Dan's voice in the distance saying, "I've got him!"

-oOoOo-

Harry opened his eyes and automatically reached for his glasses on the bedside table, only to have someone hand them to him. Emma was sitting at his bedside and placed a bookmark in the book she was reading.

"Good morning, Harry," she whispered, pointing to the other side of the room. Harry looked where she was pointing and smiled as he saw a pyjama-wearing Hermione asleep in a bed not far away from his own.

There was a somewhat larger bed on the other side in which Dan lay asleep. He turned on his side so he could more easily look at Hermione. "_I don't know why, but I could happily watch you sleep for hours, Hermione,_" he thought.

He was surprised a moment later as Emma whispered again, "It is nice to watch them sleep so peacefully. There are times when I wake up in the middle of the night for no reason and sneak into her room just to watch her sleep. When she was at Hogwarts, I would watch Dan sleep. It is amazing how it helps to pull your thoughts back down to the here and now."

Harry slowly rolled back over and looked at Emma. A tear was slowly trickling down her cheek as she watched Hermione and Dan sleep and then she looked at Harry.

She wiped her eyes and smiled an embarrassed smile. Harry was about to ask Emma a question when Bonnie quietly entered the room. The fact that she made almost no sound at all was disquieting for Harry until he realised there must be a silencing spell on the door and on her shoes.

"Good morning, Harry. How are you feeling this morning?" Bonnie asked quietly.

"I'm feeling better," he said. His stomach chose that moment to announce it believed his throat had been failing to do its job and send food down.

"Let's see about getting you some food. Would you like that?" Bonnie asked.

"I don't mean to be any trouble," Harry said, flinching at the memory of what happened in the past when he asked for food from Aunt Petunia.

The only outward sign that Bonnie was less than pleased with this was a slight narrowing of her eyes. "Harry. I am going to go bring you and Mrs Granger some breakfast. We need you to get better and eating is one of the ways you'll get better," Bonnie whispered, her smile back in full force.

Harry simply nodded with a grateful smile.

"Mrs. Granger, would you be so kind as to help me with breakfast?" Bonnie asked.

Emma nodded to Bonnie then whispered to Bonnie, "I would be happy to," then she looked at Harry and whispered to him with a smile and a wink, "Harry, you keep an eye on those two and keep them out of trouble while I am gone, okay?"

Harry smiled and nodded. Emma stood and set her book on the chair, ruffled Harry's hair gently and walked out of the room with Bonnie, allowing the door to close behind her silently.

Harry once more rolled over and watched as Hermione continued to sleep. He didn't realise it as it happened, but he dozed off with a smile gracing his face.

-oOoOo-

Emma walked out of the room, following Bonnie and the tears began flowing once more. This time it was tears of rage and anger. _"How anyone could treat a child in such a fashion! And one as sweet, as courageous as Harry,_" she thought.

Bonnie stopped suddenly, turned around and pulled Emma into a hug. In the week they had been staying at the hospital so Hermione could stay with her friend, this was the first time Emma had seen Bonnie break down and cry. Emma held her for some minutes until Bonnie's shoulders stopped heaving with the worst of her tears.

Bonnie pulled back in embarrassment. She wiped her eyes and said, "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Granger. Look at me. A fully-qualified mediwitch a year away from becoming a healer and I lose my composure over a patient."

Emma held Bonnie by her shoulders and forced Bonnie to look into her eyes. "As a doctor, nurse, healer or mediwitch, we are not required to leave our humanity at home. I know you have come in after your shift to look in on him. You've probably seen me watching him while he was asleep."

Bonnie nodded.

"Compassion is one of the strengths a successful doctor or healer has. With a patient like Harry, compassion is a three-edged sword. It helps the patient heal faster by demonstrating there are those who care about their well-being, but it can also cut us to the bone with the pain we feel for the children who are not cared for as they should be, and it can cut you so deeply that you bury the compassion with detachment, harming your ability to be in touch with your patient's needs."

"But, finally, it can prevent you from being objective with your patients when all you have is compassion," Emma said thoughtfully, then turned to look at the closed door then back again at Bonnie. "I think, though, that Harry is one of those cases where the compassion is well-placed. He needs good, loving people around him who genuinely care for him as a person. That has been something lacking, even when he was away at school."

Bonnie nodded mutely, wiping the tears from her eyes. Then she looked at Emma and laughed a moment, "Well, we should probably bring him back a good, hearty breakfast then!" Emma smiled and took Bonnie's hand.

"Lead on to breakfast," Emma said.

Bonnie lead her to the ward desk and called for a house elf to bring breakfast for four. Before the diminutive little creature could disappear, Emma said "Five," and before Bonnie could protest, Emma continued her thought, "We also need Harry surrounded by positive role models during breakfast and I am guessing you didn't have breakfast before you started your shift."

Bonnie smiled then looked at the elf. "Breakfast for five, then, Twinkle." The elf popped away and Emma and Bonnie walked back to the room.

-oOoOo-

Harry awoke again to the aroma of tea, bacon, ham, pastries and scrambled eggs. He opened his eyes and saw a short person zooming around a table setting plates, utensils and napkins before covering the plates in the most mouth-watering food Harry had ever seen which he himself had not prepared.

He saw that Dan was already awake and dressed and Emma was coaxing Hermione to wake up. Hermione groused for a few moments before rolling over and seeing Harry. Her frown transformed into an embarrassed smile.

"Good morning, Harry," Hermione said with a mixture of happiness and embarrassment.

"Good morning, Hermione," Harry said, then tried to remember the sorts of things Uncle Vernon had said to Aunt Petunia first thing in the morning. "You look lovely," he said.

Hermione blushed brightly then sat up in bed and looked in the mirror on the wall. She then looked over at Harry. "I think we need to get you to an optometrist, Harry. If you think I look lovely this morning, your glasses must be horribly out of date!" Hermione said with a smile.

Dan watched the interplay between the two of them. "Hermione, I think his eyesight is just fine. Even with your hair looking as if you got zapped by the mains, you're still a pretty girl," Dan said with a smile.

"Daddy! You're just biased," Hermione said, mortified that even her dad thought she was pretty when one could hide an elephant in her hair when she first awoke in the morning.

The five sat down for breakfast, but before Harry could eat, he had several potions to consume. "They'll help your body along with getting better and staying healthy," Bonnie had said as she watched Harry to make sure he drank all four potions down. Once he had, with a twisted, 'how-can-they-make-potions-taste-THAT-yucky!' look on his face, she said, "Now that wasn't so bad. Tuck in and we'll see if you can leave here today," Bonnie finished with a smile.

Harry began eating with enthusiasm. The food was wonderful and he was sitting with people who seemed to genuinely like him for who he was and not some 'boy-who-lived' person that he really wasn't.

He had almost finished with his second plate of food when the words Bonnie said hit him. "...leave here today..." echoed in his mind. Bonnie, Dan and Emma immediately noted the change in his demeanour and Hermione was a few seconds behind as she had been chatting about her grandparents to Bonnie.

"Harry, what ever is the matter?" Emma asked as fear gripped Harry.

"Where will I go when I leave here? Uncle Vernon always said that if anything happened to them I would be out on the street or in prison for freaks. Why do I have to leave today?" Harry was now in a complete panic, his food sitting in his stomach like a lead ball.

Emma got up and went around Hermione to embrace Harry, who was shaking in fear. "Harry, you will not be out on the street and you are not going to any prison. At the very least, we have a guest bedroom you can sleep in and you could stay with us this summer. Would you like that?" she asked.

"I don't want to ruin your nice house by me being there, Mrs. Granger," Harry said, his voice quivering on the verge of hysteria.

Emma looked at Dan, who looked at Harry from across the table. "Harry, please look at me," Dan said with iron in his voice.

Harry immediately looked at Dan, his eyes filled with fear.

In a much softer tone, Dan continued. "Harry, son, regardless of how your aunt and uncle treated you, you deserve to have a safe place to sleep, good food to make you strong and healthy and role models to help you develop socially and morally. I am concerned that you would think your presence in our home would ruin it, when my perspective is that your presence will enrich our lives and give Emma and me an opportunity to get to know you at least as well as Hermione does now."

Harry had stopped shivering and was looking at Dan in bewilderment. "You want me to stay with you?" Harry asked incredulously, looking between Emma and Dan. Hermione looked fit to burst.

"The three of us would be very happy if you would stay with us, Harry," Emma said with a smile at Harry.

"I can cook and clean and do the weeding and I don't eat too much and..." Harry was mid-rant when Dan cut him off.

"Harry, there might be chores to do, but all four of us will take part in them. I expect you've learned some behaviour from your aunt and uncle which we will gently remind you to modify. While I am sure you are an accomplished cook, for the most part, Emma and I do the cooking."

"We can figure out anything else as it comes up, but Emma and I, and I am sure Hermione as well," to which Hermione was animatedly nodding vehemently, "are inviting you, not compelling you, to live with us. I think you have some additional business with Gringotts today or tomorrow which may provide you with other options. Neither Emma nor I are willing to see you released from here with no where to go," Dan said with a kindly smile.

Harry looked up at Emma as if for confirmation.

She looked down at him and smiled with unshed tears in her eyes. Hermione was wound up tightly but didn't want to say anything because it might make Harry feel like it was forced on him. Harry wrapped his arms around Emma and hugged her while he cried.

_"No one has ever wanted me before. What did I do to make them like me so much? Am I hurting Hermione's feelings?"_ he thought. He pushed away from Emma and looked at Hermione, who had her fist in her mouth to keep from screaming or saying anything.

"Hermione, do you want me to stay with you and your parents?" Harry asked nervously. He wasn't sure how Hermione could get up from the table and hug him so quickly but here she was, engulfing him in a bone-cracking hug.

"Please say 'yes', Harry. I would be so happy if you could stay with us this summer!" she said, pulling back and looking at him, her eyes glistening.

"Okay, Hermione..." he began.

Harry didn't get the rest of his sentence out as Hermione kissed him on the cheek and excitedly said, "Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Harry! This summer is going to be so much fun!" Hermione exclaimed before giving Harry a hug and then Emma and running around the table so she could hug Dan and finally she hugged Bonnie then she sat down next to Harry again, an ear-to-ear smile adorning her face.

"Now Kitten, clean your plate. You, too, Harry. You both will likely need your energy today," Emma softly chided them both.

Harry also had a huge smile on his face as he finished his second helping, only to have Bonnie put another scoop of eggs and two more pieces of bacon on his plate.

He turned to look at her with a smile and she pulled him into a hug, which he returned with enthusiasm. She then pointed to his plate and said, "if you finish that, you can get your business with Gringott's done today."

Harry began eating his third helping and wondered how his life had changed so rapidly for the better.

-oOoOo-

Author's note:

The original Chapter 1 for this story had so many cliches and plot holes in it, I felt it necessary to rewrite it from scratch. This is going to require later modifications to the previously posted chapters 3 and 4 and a complete scrapping and rewrite of chapter 2.

Year 1 is also going through major revisions, but I wanted to get Year 2, chapters 1 and 2 completed, chapters 3 and 4 revised and then see if the readers want Year 2 completed or Year 1 rewritten before I choose a direction; not that lack of direction is going to stop me from writing one or the other - it will just let me know what people are more interested in reading.


	2. The Reading of a Will

-oOoOo-

With breakfast finished, Ironclaw, attended by Steelfist, entered Harry's room. Steelfist was carrying a small iron-strapped box with him.

"Lord Potter, it is good to see you are doing well. We have some personal items which Obliviator Morris and Auror Fitzsimmons were able to recover for you," Ironclaw said, motioning for Steelfist to precede him to the table.

Steelfist set the box on the table and waved his hand over it, causing the box to quadruple in size, before stepping back and behind Ironclaw once more.

Ironclaw opened the box and then spun it around so that Harry could see the contents. Within the box was Harry's invisibility cloak and, resting on top of the cloak, was his transfiguration book and diagonally across his book lay his wand. Harry stared at his wand, book and cloak with his mouth a bit open. Ironclaw somewhat misinterpreted Harry's expression.

"Lord Potter, it would appear your incident of hysterical magic also enclosed a portion of your trunk. In addition to your wand, book and cloak, there were some pieces of your other school books and some of your clothing protected, but based on their condition, it was decided they were too damaged to be of use. Gringott's can have a concierge replace the books and clothing you lost today, if you wish," Ironclaw said.

Harry looked up from the box to see Ironclaw with a concerned look on his face. He replayed Ironclaw's words in his head. "Sir, I am not upset about my books or my clothes, as they can be replaced. I am just very pleased my wand and cloak were undamaged," Harry said.

Ironclaw smiled, as did Steelfist. "I would also like to introduce you to the goblin who has been managing House Potter's assets and investments for the last sixty-two years," Ironclaw said, gesturing to Steelfist, who bowed to Harry. "This is Major Accounts Manager Steelfist and he had your grandparent's and your parent's complete trust in the strategic operations of your family's businesses. I would like to assure you he is a most capable goblin to have attained the rank of Major Accounts Manager," Ironclaw explained.

"Pleased to meet you, Sir," Harry said respectfully to Steelfist.

"Lord Potter, if I may say so, you very much remind me of your father and his father before him. It is rare to meet an equal amongst wizards," Steelfist replied respectfully.

"Not to be rude, Sir, but what do you mean by an 'equal amongst wizards'?" Hermione asked, her eyes narrowed.

Steelfist looked at Hermione. "The meaning behind the phrase is not contemptible from The People's perspective, Miss Granger. It means precisely the intent of the witch or wizard and their perceived perspective of The People. It is clear to me, as I am certain it is clear to Elector Ironclaw," Ironclaw nodded at this, "that you, as well as Lord Potter, believe Goblinkind are equal in your eyes to you. Most of wizarding kind treat Goblinkind as if we are barely above the level of house elves in their minds. So please do not take offence, as none is intended by the use of the phrase when spoken by The People," Steelfist explained.

"Well, of course you're equal. You're a person," Hermione said as if that explained everything.

"Miss Granger, when you graduate, if you maintain your attitude about The People, Gringott's would happily offer you gainful employment," Ironclaw said with a smile, causing Hermione to blush.

"Could you thank Auror Fitzsimmons and Obliviator Morris for finding and returning my things. I truly appreciate it!" Harry said earnestly to Ironclaw and Steelfist.

"We shall pass on your gratitude, Lord Potter," Ironclaw said. A soft chime was heard from Ironclaw's vest. "I find I must apologise. I have a meeting with Guilder Gringott in Brussels in a few moments but wanted to insure you felt you are being well taken care of, Lord Potter," Ironclaw said.

"Thank you for coming, Sir. Everyone seems to be taking really good care of me," Harry said, smiling at everyone in the room.

"Then I will leave you in Steelfist's capable hands but may drop by from time to time to look in on you," Ironclaw said then took his leave.

-oOoOo-

Steelfist had sent the required notifications to those mentioned in Lord Potter's will within minutes of Elector Ironclaw's notification of locating the heir. Of those notifications sent, only five recipients failed to appear for the reading of the will. It was expected that Sirius Black, imprisoned in Azkaban for the murder of Peter Pettigrew and the betrayal and murder of James and Lily Potter, would not be replying. Franklin and Alice Longbottom would not be appearing, in their stead, the matriarch of House Longbottom notified the goblins of her intent to appear on their behalf. No one of Peter Pettigrew's family could be reached. Maia Lovegood had been killed performing spell research in her home two years ago. A completely unexpected turn of events was that Headmaster of Hogwarts and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Albus Dumbledore, did not reply to his notification. All others mentioned in the will were in attendance, as well as a few additional attendees not specified in the will.

Nymphadora Tonks, sporting pink hair, was attended by her parents, Andromeda and Theodore "Ted" Tonks.

Xenophilius Lovegood was in attendance with his daughter, Luna.

Amelia Bones was accompanied by her niece and ward, Susan.

Remus Lupin came alone but he seemed captivated by the young, pink-haired woman.

Kingsley Shacklebolt, wearing the gold-trimmer robes of a senior auror, came alone, not surprised that his director was also in attendance considering her friendship and mentoring of both James and Lily.

Minerva McGonagall, Poppy Pomfrey, Filius Flitwick, Rubeus Hagrid and Pomona Sprout arrived as a group and chatted with a number of others beforehand.

At Steelfist's suggestion, Harry was accompanied by Hermione and her parents and they entered the room last, having stayed in Steelfist's office until all others had arrived.

A hush settled over the room as Harry entered the room with Hermione, Dan and Emma. As Harry sat at the seat furthest from the door, ostensibly at the head of the table, with Hermione sitting on his right and Dan and Emma sitting on his left. All eyes were on Harry until the door once more opened as Steelfist entered the room with two goblin security guards.

"Good afternoon to you all," Steelfist said to the room at large, standing at a podium at the far end of the table from Harry. "I am Major Account Manager Steelfist. We have gathered today for the reading of the last will and testament of the late James Jonathan Potter, Lord of House Potter. Before we begin today's proceedings are there any comments, concerns or questions before we begin?" Steelfist asked. When no one spoke for a few moments, Steelfist continued. "With due consideration for the covenants of the treaty of one thousand, eight hundred and forty three, between The People and The Crown as represented by the Ministry of Magic, Gringott's has duly notified all named beneficiaries of the document we will be reading today. Those not in attendance are as follows:"

"Peter Bartholomew Pettigrew, presumed deceased, no response to notification."

"Sirius Orion Black, incarcerated for life in Azkaban for the presumed homicide of Peter Bartholomew Pettigrew and twelve unnamed persons without magic and aiding in the homicides of James Jonathan Potter and Lily Antoinette Potter."

"Franklin Tybalt Longbottom and Alice Elizabeth Prewitt-Longbottom, incapable of attending due to injuries suffered at the hands of enemies of The Crown and The People, represented by Lord Neville Franklin Longbottom and his House-appointed regent, Augusta Longbottom, matriarch of House Longbottom;" Steelfist used his open hand to gesture at Neville and Madam Longbottom.

"Maia Copernicus Lovegood, deceased, represented by her daughter, Luna Selene Lovegood;" Steelfist again gestured to Luna, who had unshed tears in her eyes, who had not stopped looking at Harry and Hermione since they had entered the room.

"Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, no response to notification;" Steelfist said and was then interrupted by Minerva McGonagall.

"Albus Dumbledore is currently on holiday but will be returning in two days," she said. "Surely he should be present for the reading of Lord Potter's will."

Steelfist looked at Minerva with disdain. "Miss McGonagall, Gringott's prides itself on upholding the strictest terms of the treaties The People have with The Crown as well as the laws as written and enforced by the Ministry of Magic. With respect to the law the Ministry passed indicating the last will and testament of a late lord of an ancient and noble house must be ratified by the ascending lord of the house within seventy-two hours of accepting the responsibilities of his lordship and that said last will and testament be read to the new lord and those named within the will within seventy-two hours of its acknowledged ratification, Gringott's is not permitted to delay the reading for any reason lest the will be considered null and void. As the new Lord Potter has ratified this last will and testament, it must be read as announced. Gringott's will notify Mister Dumbledore as to his acceptance or not of the bequeaths made in this will. Unless you have any further comments or objections, I shall proceed," Steelfist concluded, not expecting any additional arguments.

Minerva looked as if she'd swallowed a lemon but did not speak.

Both Dan and Emma took note of the expressions around the table and Emma had been making notes from the time she sat.

Steelfist continued. "Lily Antoinette Potter, deceased, homicide committed at the hands of enemies of The Crown and The People," Steelfist paused for a moment as Hermione held Harry's hand, who had started crying.

After a few moments, Harry squeezed Hermione's hand and released her. Steelfist continued.

"We shall now commence the reading of the last will and testament of James Jonathan Potter, the late Lord of House Potter," Steelfist said formally.

A large multifaceted crystalline bowl rose from the centre of the table as the lights in the room dimmed. James Potter appeared life size in the centre of the table above the bowl and began speaking.

-oOoOo-

James seemed to be looking directly at Harry as James read the will. As James spoke, tears once again slowly crept down Harry's face. Hermione took his hand on the table in both of hers, her entire focus being Harry. Harry only had eyes for his father at the moment.

"This is the Last Will and Testament of James Jonathan Potter, Lord of House Potter, et alii"

"I, James Jonathan Potter, Lord of House Potter, and lord of all other houses to which I am sworn, being of sound mind, body and magic, do, by my own hand, write this last will and testament, on this day, the twenty-seventh of September in the year one thousand, nine hundred, eighty and one by common reckoning."

"I make the following declarations:"

"I do hereby revoke all prior wills and codicils."

"I am married to Lily Antoinette Potter and all references in this Will to my spouse refer to Lily Antoinette Potter."

"I have one living child named Harry James Potter. All references in this will to my child, children, or my issue include Harry James Potter and any child or children hereafter born to or adopted by me."

Hermione's heart was breaking as Harry removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to stem the flow of tears.

"I declare these specific bequests and devices:"

"Due to the circumstances in which my death likely arose, be it clearly stated here that I was resident at Godric's Hollow and that residence was protected by the Fidelius Charm, preventing anyone not specifically told of its location by the secret keeper from finding myself, my spouse or my child. It was a dearest friend in which we entrusted the secret. He is a noble, courageous and honourable man. A man with a heart which knows no bounds and a streak of mischief as wide as a quidditch field is long. There is only one way I know this friend would betray our secret and that would be after days of torture unimaginable of which the only salvation would have been death. To that end, and in honour of his memory, I bequeath one hundred thousand galleons to the surviving members of Peter Bartholomew Pettigrew's family."

There were gasps of surprise around the table and the noise level drowned out the recording. Steelfist paused the reading of the will. Amelia Bones stood and faced Steelfist. "Sir, if this is true..." she began but was cut off by the goblin.

"Madam Bones, as you are well aware, any declaration within a last will and testament with regard to any criminal investigation is considered a dying declaration by The People and The Crown. The People will expect a full reckoning by The Crown as represented by the Ministry of Magic of the details of the trial regarding the homicide of Peter Bartholomew Pettigrew and the subsequent conviction of Sirius Orion Black as required by treaty. The People will, of course, give the Ministry the full twenty-four hours from the time a duly-appointed member of the Ministry has been made aware of a question of law before The People approach The Crown for resolution. As you are a duly-appointed member of the Ministry and have been notified of an irregularity, the Ministry now has twenty-three hours, fifty-nine minutes and twelve seconds to provide The People with an appropriately assembled explanation. If the accounting as specified in this will is found to be accurate, The People will expect that Sirius Orion Black will be released from his imprisonment and appropriately compensated for his wrongful conviction at the adjudicated rate of his expected income during the time of his incarceration in addition to the interest and penalties as specified by law. The bequeath to Mister Pettigrew's family shall be held in abeyance until such time as the Ministry informs Gringott's of the outcome of it's investigation or one year, whichever is longer. Did you wish to inform your department of this discovery at this time?" Steelfist asked.

Amelia nodded. "If I may have your assistance by providing an owl?" she asked. A piece of parchment and an ever-inking quill appeared on the table in front of her. She quickly wrote a note and set the quill back on the table. Both the quill and the note disappeared.

"Your missive should arrive within the minute to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement as well as instructions sent to the Captain of the Guard at Azkaban to insure the safe transport of one Sirius Orion Black to a Ministry holding cell," Steelfist said.

"Thank you," Amelia said.

"Excuse me, Account Manager Steelfist, what precisely does this imply with regard to this Black person?" Dan asked.

"Sirius Orion Black was sent to Azkaban prison for betraying James and Lily Potter and for murdering Peter Pettigrew," Steelfist explained. "As the late Lord Potter has clearly stated in his will that, contrary to popular belief, Mister Black was not the Potter's secret keeper for the fidelius charm so could not have betrayed James and Lily Potter. As Mr. Black was also accused of committing homicide against the stated secret keeper, as named by the late Lord Potter, in a very public way, it was presumed he was attempting to wipe out all of his friends. This revelation brings to light a discrepancy and, as required by treaty, this discrepancy must be investigated to the satisfaction of The People," Steelfist explained.

"I have heard that phrase many times over the past several days, Account Manager. Who are The People?" Dan asked. The room fell silent except for the soft sound of Harry crying and Hermione's gentle attempts to console him.

"'The People', Dr. Granger, refer to the five hundred and twelve tribes of goblins who formed an allegiance and have signed treaties with The Crown," Steelfist said, then looked around the room at the five children and returned his gaze to Dan. "I would be happy to have appropriate explanatory information provided to you, as well as copies of the current treaties at the conclusion of today's business. Let it be noted The People do not take affront at Doctor Daniel Granger's honest question," Steelfist said formally. Steelfist briefly looked at Harry and saw that he had composed himself. "Let us continue with the reading," Steelfist said.

The projection of James once more began speaking.

"To a man who was, in my heart, all but a twin brother to me in my childhood, my adulthood, my occupation of choice, a man for whom there were no obstacles which could not be overcome, to the godfather of my son, I bequeath my Marauders' Map of Diagon and Knockturn Alleys, my Speedway broom and my lifetime membership to Quidditch Weekly to Sirius Orion Black. Use them in good health and good spirits, Brother."

"To a man who was, in my heart, all but a younger brother to me, whose childhood affliction was never looked upon when judging his character by either myself, my family or my true friends. A man whose heart is far larger than mine. A man whose only shortcoming is his own sense, or lack thereof, of self-worth, but for whom my love as a brother never wavered, I bequeath one hundred thousand galleons and Potter Knoll on the shores of Dover to Remus John Lupin. There is a room at Potter Knoll just for your furry little problem, Little Brother."

Remus openly wept at the generosity of the man he had looked to as an older brother.

"To a girl who is, in my heart, a daughter of great strength and great gift, whether it be the harpsichord, the violin or the piano, from which she brings forth the most heartfelt music, I bequeath my harpsichord, violin, piano, a copy of the Potter collection of sheet music and one hundred thousand galleons to Nymphadora Ophelia Tonks; the monies to be placed in trust until she reaches her legal majority. To insure her tuitions, living expenses and other expenses a young girl may have, an additional trust fund of fifty thousand galleons is bequeathed in her name. Both trusts are to be managed by Gringott's Wizarding Bank. It is with great sadness in my heart that, if you're watching this, Little Nym, I did not get to witness you growing into the fine young woman I know you will become."

Nymphadora was crying into her father's shoulder as her mother gently held her from behind. Nymphadora fondly remembered her Aunt Lily and Uncle James encouraging her in her love of music. To now have the very instruments that so reminded her of their generosity was a gift beyond measure.

"To a man who has watched my back at least as often as I have watched his in this most recent age of terrorism, a man whose courage is matched by few, I bequeath fifty thousand galleons to Kingsley Parthias Shacklebolt. Buy the lads and ladies a bender on me when its all over, Shack. I only wish our hope of the two of us sharing a retirement party could have been a reality."

Kingsley was known amongst the Auror Corp as an emotionless man of granite. He nodded to the projection of James as a lone tear coursed down his face.

"To a man and a woman who helped Lily and me through the rollercoaster of first loves, our first year of marriage and for whom their son is as a brother to my son, I bequeath one hundred thousand galleons to Franklin Tybalt Longbottom and Alice Elizabeth Prewitt-Longbottom. I know the two of you will help Lily raise Harry alongside of Neville. I only wish that I could be there as well."

Also not known as the most emotionally expressive person, Augusta Longbottom dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief her grandson, Neville had handed her. At the mention of his parents' names, Neville unashamedly let his tears slowly fall to the table as he held his grandmother's hand in an attempt to comfort her. Augusta looked at her grandson then meaningfully looked at Harry, who was clearly on the edge of sobbing. Neville nodded, kissed her on the cheek, stood and walked to the head of the table and embraced Harry in a hug. At the contact of the boy who with whom he should have been raised as a brother, Harry began sobbing. Steelfist paused the reading. Understanding how Harry felt, having lost both parents, Susan squeezed her aunt's hand and joined Neville and Hermione in their attempts to comfort Harry. Doubting that she would be welcome, but knowing she should make the effort regardless, Luna gave her father a quick hug and joined to help another child through his grief.

Although Harry's eyes were closed, he knew Neville had come to help comfort him. He could not describe how, but he could sense Hermione was there as well, feeling her magic intermingling with his, bringing him comfort for reasons he could not articulate even in his own mind. He then sensed another whose magic also intermingled with his and with Hermione's, changing the colour and the flavour of the magic surrounding him, adding a vibrancy and an energy which helped him to overcome the overwhelming grief and sense of loss he was feeling. Just when he was about to open his eyes, he sensed a tentative, almost frightened, magic approaching him. It mingled with his as well and shared with him its own sense of loss. Her own sense of loss. He suddenly realised the magics all had a similar feel to them as Hermione's; feminine, yet strong; beautiful yet practical; colourful yet organized. Suddenly these three intermingling magics reached a crescendo of warmth and support, in addition to Neville's physical gesture of support, which helped Harry to bear his grief, not more readily or more easily, but in the knowledge that others, too, had suffered the loss of those they loved or never knew yet they reached out to him to help him with his pain. _"How can I matter that much to people I barely know, if I know them at all?_" he thought. He then felt a tiny, tiny flare of magic and felt the physical presence of two others and knew from the tenderness with which his head was held that Emma was holding him as well. _"I haven't told them yet!"_ he suddenly thought. He opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by Hermione, Emma, Dan, Neville, Susan Bones from Hufflepuff and another pretty girl he had not yet met. Neville was hugging him, Emma had both Neville and Harry's heads gathered to her bosom, while Hermione, Susan and the other girl were surrounding him and Neville. Dan was standing behind Emma with his hand on Harry's shoulder. "_How did I come to be standing?"_ he thought, so wrapped up in his grief that he had not realized Neville had pulled him to his feet.

"Harry, we didn't get a chance when we were younger to be brothers, but I know I could sure use one as brave as you," Neville said, somewhat embarrassed, giving Harry a squeeze then letting him go.

"I know I could use a brother to talk to, as well," Susan said, smiling at Harry.

"I know I could use some friends. Since my mother..." the blonde girl said and then her chin quivered as two tears ran down her cheeks, "since she died, it's been just my dad and me and he's always busy with The Quibbler and it's so lonely..." she whispered, still crying. Harry was paralysed by indecision. He literally didn't know what to do. Apparently Susan, Hermione and Neville did, however. Susan embraced the younger girl, Hermione took her hand in her free hand as she was still holding Harry's hand, and Neville rubbed gentle circles on her back. Harry knew all too painfully what it was like to have no friends and he wanted to reach out to her but she was already effectively surrounded. As with turning off the yellow sphere of energy that had protected him, he closed his eyes and felt for his magic which was still intermingled with the magic of the three girls and he thought about hugging the girl with his magic and focused on how good it felt when Hermione hugged him.

Suddenly Hermione, Susan and Luna closed their eyes as they felt someone hugging them gently all around them, surrounding them with an almost overpowering sense of safety, friendship and love. He didn't know it had worked until he opened his eyes and saw all three girls leaning into one another with happy little smiles on their faces. He squeezed Hermione's hand but she didn't respond. Emma was looking at the girls with some concern as well. Dan looked at the girls, looked at the somewhat lost expression on Neville's face then looked at the small smile on Harry's face.

"Harry," Dan whispered, "I am not upset, I am just curious. What did you do?" he asked

"Um...I felt their magic mixing with mine and I didn't know what to do for her because I couldn't hug her with my arms so I...er...hugged her with my magic," Harry explained timidly.

Dan smiled at Harry. "I think you may have overdone it a bit. Can you release your hug?" he asked.

Harry closed his eyes and reached out to his magic and thought about releasing his hug.

"That was amazing!" Luna exclaimed softly, opening her eyes and looking at Harry at the same time a pleasantly surprised Susan exclaimed, "Wow!"

Hermione looked at Harry shyly, with the little smile still in place, "You sure know how to make a girl feel safe, Harry."

"That was Harry?" Susan and Luna asked in unison.

Steelfist had been watching the interplay of the five children, along with everyone else in the room, and decided now might be a good time to continue with the reading. He cleared his throat loudly and asked, "Lord Potter, are we ready to continue the reading?"

Harry looked up to see everyone else in the room looking at him. "Yyyyyes," he stuttered self-consciously. The other four also looked a bit self-conscious and returned to their seats.

Steelfist waited for everyone to sit once more then continued the reading.

The projection of James began speaking again.

"To a boy who is still but a babe, but has in him the lineage of lions, the strength and will of a hundred generations of righteous, courageous, honourable men and strong, practical, courageous women coursing through his veins, I bequeath one hundred thousand galleons to Neville Franklin Longbottom, to be placed in trust until he reaches his majority. The trust to be managed by Gringott's Wizarding Bank."

Neville blushed in embarrassment at the compliment. Augusta patted him on the back and nodded.

"To my dearest friends, with whom my spouse and I of late have become closer than I thought possible, Xenophilius Desideratum Lovegood and Maia Copernicus Lovegood, I bequeath one hundred thousand galleons. May you find the happiness for which you seek."

At the mention of her mother's name, Luna began crying again. Although her father was sitting beside her, it was Susan, sitting on her other side who gathered Luna to her chest and held her as she cried.

"To their as-yet-unborn daughter, I bequeath fifty thousand galleons to Luna Selene Lovegood to be placed in trust until she reaches her majority. May you inherit the beauty, grace and intellect of your mother and the interest in discovering wonder your dear father has. May you find a gentle path through life and find a love as pure as your parents' love for one another."

Xenophilius lost his composure and wept into his hands.

"To my mentors and beloved instructors, Amelia Susan Bones, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Minerva Guinevere McGonagall, Margaret Poppy Withypoll Pomfrey, Filius Warwick Flitwick, and Miriam Pomona Sprout, I bequeath to each fifty thousand galleons. I cannot, with words alone, express to all of you the respect I have for each and every one of you, your abilities and your willingness to share so much of yourselves in shaping our world's future."

Of those present from Hogwarts, only Filius was without tears, and then only because of his self-discipline. He had mentioned James and Lily, along with the names of many others whom he felt were fallen warriors, in his nightly rituals of remembrance.

"To a friend of unimaginable innocence, whose courage is so natural to him as to go unnoticed, I bequeath fifty thousand galleons to Rubius Robert Hagrid. Never change, my beloved friend."

Hagrid was openly crying, being comforted and providing comfort to Minerva and Pomona.

"To my beloved Lily, mother of my son, my partner in life, love and magic, a woman for whom my love knows no bounds nor limits, who saw past the rogue and helped shape the responsible, honourable gentleman I am today, I bequeath one half of all the chattel, residue and remains of my Estate, after payment of all my just debts, expenses, taxes, administration costs and individual devices and bequests, if any."

The love James clearly had for Lily was expressed so profoundly that Hermione and Emma could not hold their emotions in check any longer. Harry, who was now unabashedly crying once more, now found himself holding and comforting Hermione as she cried tears of loss for Harry. Dan similarly held Emma.

As James began again, Harry held Hermione as he listened to the projection of his father.

"To my blessed son, Harry James Potter, my light of hope and continuation of love, honour, strength and courage in this earthly world, whose very being helped to resolve and strengthen the will and courage of those who fight against tyranny and evil, I bequeath all titles and oaths, one half of all the chattel, residue and remains of my Estate, after payment of all my just debts, expenses, taxes, administration costs and individual devices and bequests, if any."

Hearing the pride in his father's voice and the love his father so clearly had for him, Harry felt something within him shifting. His sense of self-worth, nearly destroyed by his years with the Dursleys now had a new foundation forming. One built on the love and pride of his birth parents and no longer undermined by the abhorrently degrading upbringing he received at the hands of the Dursleys. Although his tears did not stop, they lessened and changed character. He was no longer crying for himself, but now crying for the world's loss of two wonderful, amazing people cut down in their prime by enemies of his family.

The projection of James continued.

"With the exception of my spouse and child, if any such named beneficiary or member of a class of beneficiaries fails to survive me by thirty days, declines the gift or is no longer in existence, I direct that said beneficiary's share pass equally to the beneficiary's surviving spouse or children. In the event no such survivors exist, the beneficiary's share shall pass, in equal parts, to the children's ward of St. Mungo's and the orphanages of the Crown, to be administered by Gringott's Wizarding Bank."

"In the event my spouse fails to survive me by thirty days or is no longer in existence, I direct that my child shall inherit all bequests of my spouse."

"In the event my spouse and my child fails to survive me by thirty days or are no longer in existence, I direct the remains of my Estate to be managed by Gringott's Wizarding Bank until such time that a successor may be located and achieve Lordship."

"I make the following provisions of guardianship:"

Harry, Hermione, Emma and Dan listened with intense interest.

"If, at my death, I have any child or children under age of majority and such child or children do not have a living parent, I nominate Franklin Tybalt Longbottom and Alice Elizabeth Prewitt-Longbottom to serve as the legal guardian or guardians of such child or children."

Augusta Longbottom was startled by this and said so. "Frank and Alice had not been attacked when James and Lily passed. How is it Harry was not sent to them when they died?"

Steelfist paused the reading once more. "In our notes on the account, the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot used a provision of the law regarding the guardianship of minor children to set aside the late Lord Potter's instructions regarding the placement of his heir. The treaty clearly indicates The Crown or The People must have custody of the child in order to challenge the Chief Warlock's decision. As Gringott's was unable to locate the heir, as required, we had no means legally to challenge the Chief Warlock's decision," Steelfist said.

"You can be certain the DMLE will be investigating this matter, Augusta," Amelia said then looked at Steelfist, "to the satisfaction of The People and The Crown." Steelfist nodded in acknowledgement and started the reading once again.

The projection of James continued.

"If these persons are unwilling or unable to serve as guardian, then I nominate Sirius Orion Black to serve as the legal guardian of such child or children."

"If this person is unwilling or unable to serve as guardian, then I nominate Amelia Susan Bones to serve as the legal guardian or guardians of such child or children."

Steelfist paused the reading, expecting a fire storm of anger. He was not entirely disappointed. Amelia looked ready to burst. "Augusta, there will be no stone unturned when I am done. No one approached me on this matter. Had I been asked to do so," she looked at Harry, "I would not have hesitated to bring you into my home, Harry," she said. Harry nodded in thanks to Amelia. Steelfist started the reading.

"If this person is unwilling or unable to serve as guardian, then I nominate Margaret Poppy Withypoll Pomfrey to serve as the legal guardian or guardians of such child or children."

Poppy was shocked She then turned to Harry. "I lost my husband two weeks after I delivered you, Harry. I would have gladly taken you into my home had I known."

Harry looked at the table in front of him and nodded, saying nothing.

James continued.f

"If this person is unwilling or unable to serve as guardian, then I nominate Minerva Guinevere McGonagall to serve as the legal guardian or guardians of such child or children."

Minerva looked at Amelia but was so angry she could not speak. Amelia could tell by the purpling of Minerva's face that she would be hearing from her after the reading was completed.

"If any legal guardian of my child or children should be appointed, I nominate the individual identified above for appointment as guardian and request the Ministry and the Crowfn to appoint the nominee, grant the guardian custody of the child or children, permit the guardian all statutory and discretionary powers permitted under the laws and treaties of the Ministry and the Crown, including but not limited to changing the residence and domicile of the children to the country where the guardian may then reside, and appoint such individual or individuals as guardian of the estate of such child or children."

"All bequeathed trusts shall be managed and held by Gringott's Wizarding Bank and The People, in whose trust I place the seeds of the future."

"At our specific instruction, any child or children under age of majority shall not be placed with the mundane and muggle relatives of my spouse. Know that any who would violate this stipulation shall be accursed and shall suffer the enmity and scorn of House Potter for the rest of their days."

The gasps around the table were loud and quite nearly unanimous. Their clear instructions ignored, their specific desires tossed aside and their son sentenced to live nine and a half years of his life to physical and emotional abuse.

James then finished the reading.

"Signed, this day, the twenty-seventh of September in the year one thousand, nine hundred, eighty and one by common reckoning, James Jonathan Potter, Lord of House Potter, et alii."

Sirius Black appeared above the bowl now, in likely his finest robes.

"Witnessed hereof by Sirius Orion Black" he said.

Everyone around the table except Harry, Hermione, Dan and Emma practically snarled as Albus Dumbledore appeared above the bowl.

"Witnessed hereof by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore"

A man few around the table recognized as one of the founding partners of the law firm House Potter used appeared above the bowl.

"Witnessed hereof Libdems Martin Dewey, esquire" he said.

A second man nearly all of the witches and wizards around the table recognized as one of the founding partners of the law firm House Potter used appeared above the bowl.

"Witnessed hereof Charles Harlequin Cheetham, esquire," he said.

A third man several around the table recognized as one of the founding partners of the law firm House Potter used appeared above the bowl.

"Witnessed hereof Heinrich Michael Howe, esquire" he said.

The bowl flared white a moment then became clear once more as the lights in the room returned to full brightness.

-oOoOo-


	3. A Shift in Power

-oOoOo-

The silence in the room was deafening. All of the adults save Steelfist, Xenophilius, Dan and Emma wondered how Albus could do such a thing. Hermione, Dan and Emma were entirely focused on Harry, who sat mutely at the head of the table, staring at the location where the bowl had receded into the table.

Luna had stopped crying but liked the way it felt to have Susan's arm around her shoulders. She sat up abruptly when she sensed the void of emotions and thought at the head of the table. It was as if Harry had disappeared mentally.

Susan was surprised after Luna stopped crying when Luna had leaned her head on Susan's shoulder and didn't pull away. Susan was a bit saddened when Luna suddenly sat up and stared at Harry, her eyes going glassy, seeming to focus on infinity. She did take note that Luna was still holding her hand.

Susan was quietly sad for Harry. She had heard from Hannah who had heard from Parvati who had heard from Lavender who had overheard Hermione and Harry talking about his upbringing before Hogwarts. Although she had to, at the time, discount many of the things she had been told, now she wasn't certain if some of the things she had been told hadn't been toned down before they got to her ears. She promised herself she would make it a point to get to know Harry better in the coming year.

Hermione was awash with different emotions, but she tossed aside her feelings, her reactions and her anger and simply held Harry's hand in both of her hands, waiting for him to once more acknowledge her. To look at her. To have any reaction whatsoever to the things he had seen and heard today.

After what seemed like hours but was, in fact only a few minutes, Harry looked at Hermione and then looked at the end of the table to Steelfist. Harry spoke in a dead voice, devoid of any emotion. "Account Manager, I believe we have additional business today," then stood, still holding Hermione's hand. He waited for Hermione, Emma and Dan to stand as well and walked out of the room, one of the goblin security guards opening the door as they approached and closing it behind them as they left.

"The reading of the last will and testament of James Jonathan Potter, the late Lord Potter, has been completed. The bequests as outlined will be available within the next seventy two hours. You shall be contacted with access or trust information at that time. This concludes today's business," Steelfist said and left the room, the guards following him out, leaving the door open.

The cacophony of shouting in their wake was both chaotic and loud but contained not one child's voice.

-oOoOo-

Steelfist entered his office, expecting Harry, Hermione, Emma and Dan to be sitting and awaiting him. He had not, however, expected Elector Ironclaw. He bowed to Ironclaw and spoke in Gobbledygook. "[_Elector, forgive my lack of preparation for your visit. Your presence honours me_]," Steelfist said.

"Lord Potter, please excuse Steelfist's language. I normally warn Account Managers prior to visiting them, however I understand you have additional business today and I rather suspect it has to do with this," Ironclaw said, indicating a stack of parchment in the centre of Steelfist's desk.

"That is a portion of my business here today," Harry said tonelessly. Hermione looked at her parents then looked at Harry. Since the provisions of guardianship had been read, Harry had become completely withdrawn except for him continuing to hold her hand.

"What business is most pressing for you today, Lord Potter?" Ironclaw asked.

"My father spoke of additional titles and said something about 'et alii' which I do not understand. What other titles and what is 'et alii'?" Harry asked.

"Let us take those in reverse order, if you do not mind, Lord Potter?" Ironclaw asked.

Harry nodded and then looked up at Ironclaw. "Sir, while I respect the need to maintain formality in front of others, would you please call me Harry," he then looked at Steelfist, "both of you, when we are in private. The title of 'Lord' is a bit overwhelming for me and I would like to think of us as acquaintances growing towards friendship, if not yet friends?" Harry said/asked.

Ironclaw nodded, keeping the smile he felt off his face, "Very well, Harry. Let me first begin with speaking of the summarizing of titles to alleviate the reading of such at formal occasions. It was decided some fourteen centuries ago that some heads of house, due to deaths, marriages and the like, had an entire tome of titles and that reading them all each and every time their title need be spoken could become tiresome, some fine dandy came up with the idea to summarize the names and titles by using the Latin term 'et alii' or 'et alia' which simply means 'and others', reducing the amount of time needed to introduce people to court or parties," he said. "Do you understand?" Ironclaw asked.

Harry nodded and felt Hermione squeeze his hand. He looked over at her and smiled, the first sign, other than the gradual thawing of his voice, that he was feeling a bit better. He turned back to Ironclaw.

"I understand. It sounds as if my father had many titles, then?" Harry asked.

"Harry, there are a number of titles your father chose to defer, against our recommendations. I believe his reasons at the time were personal and, should you find his journal in your vaults, perhaps you could satisfy an old goblin's curiosity and tell me when and if you do come across the reasons. At present, we believe it is still for the best for you to claim all of the titles to which you are heir. Some of these may be controversial were they to be claimed as it could have the impact of changing the political structure of the Wizengamot as each Lordship you claim gives you control of, at minimum, one seat on the Wizengamot, which are currently held in abeyance until the rightful heir claims them," Ironclaw explained.

"Abeyance?" Harry asked.

"In stasis or waiting for the rightful owner," Hermione provided with an embarrassed smile as everyone turned their attention to her. She blushed prettily, Harry thought and squeezed her hand.

"Quite correct, Miss Granger. These votes, seventy-nine, have not voted in over thirty years. Should you accept the titles which control them, you would have almost half of all available votes. The other ninety-two active seats essentially couldn't pass a single law you did not approve of, thus changing the primary generator of laws away from the small factions which exist today to you and any single faction you aligned yourself with. I will warn you that taking this action will not make you very popular on the floor of the Wizengamot. The fact that you are also the head of an ancient and noble house and that house is a Founding Family, gives you additional sway most other members would trade their children for in a moment," Ironclaw explained.

Hermione raised her hand to ask a question, at which both Ironclaw and Harry smiled. "Miss Granger, please feel free to ask any questions or insert any comments. I assure you that Harry, Steelfist and I will not take exception to your honest curiosity," Ironclaw said and both Harry and Steelfist nodded in agreement. Emma had been taking notes and she was poised to write Hermione's question down as precisely as possible.

"I've heard those two terms several times, both today and last year. Could you explain precisely what 'ancient and noble house' and 'Founding Family' mean, Elector?" Hermione asked.

"I see that the 'History of Magical Europe' class is even more disappointing than we had been led to believe," Ironclaw said sadly, pinching the bridge of his nose in a very human gesture of frustration.

"Before the 'War of Races'," Ironclaw began then looked up at Hermione, "Does your teacher speak of this conflict?" he asked.

Hermione shook her head with a betrayed expression.

Ironclaw spoke a short bit of Gobbledygook to Steelfist who opened one of his desk drawers and removed a sculpted glass bottle filled with a blood-red syrupy liquid and poured Ironclaw a small, short, thimble-sized crystalline glass with the fluid. He sniffed the contents, relaxed into the plush seat and began speaking.

"Before the founding of Hogwarts and the Ministry, the Elves of the Western Vale found amongst them an Oracle. It is from their accounting that I speak now and not from The People's accounting, which is clearly biased towards Goblinkind, much the way the Ministry's accounting is clearly biased toward Humankind. Amongst the elven kin, an Oracle was considered a gift from those who went before, for it was known that an Oracle could only speak truth from the future. This Oracle spoke of a great war amongst the Dwarves, the Goblins, and the Humans. It would eventually ensnare the Elves who had not left these shores. The Goblins and the Dwarves had always had minor disagreements over riches found in the depths of the rocks and caverns which were their homes. The Humans and the Dwarves had conflict over the ley lines, for which the Dwarves seemed to have no feel and would cut through to mine out a shovelful of gold, mithril or silver. The Goblins and the Humans had petty arguments over the sharing and holding of wealth with and for the Humans. Word of the Oracle and her predictions reached the ears of Dwarves, Humans and Goblins. As each race heard of the Oracle, they began to plot against the other, until all three believed war was at the next rising of the sun and the one to attack first, in their minds, would be the ultimate victor. Four years, to the day, after the first rumours of the Oracles predictions were heard by the races, the drums of war could be heard across Europe."

Ironclaw paused for a moment and took a slight taste of his drink using the very tip of his tongue. He shuddered at the strength of the liqueur then relaxed once more into the chair. "It happened on the same day, as the Oracle had predicted, the triangular tinderbox this situation had become raged into open, bloody combat pitting Dwarf against Goblin against Human. No one race would win, as the moment one looked to be nearing victorious, the second would join hands with the third and beat the first down until the whole, vicious cycle started over again. In eighteen lunar months of war of the males of fighting age, forty percent of the Humans, seventy percent of the Dwarves and eighty percent of the Goblins lay slain on the field of battle. Words alone cannot convey the horrific impact this had on the societies involved. Losing even five percent of an entire population can be devastating. To lose so many men in so little time was a blow to the society. Men of fighting age did most of the tasks requiring arduous labour. Who would mine the metals if there were only the elderly, the infirm, the very young or the women to do the work? Who would sire the children? Who would care for the elderly when their time of passing drew near? These were questions the Elves asked of the fighting races in the first two months in an effort to bring all to their senses. The questions grew more grim as the days passed. Who will harvest the crops? Who will clear the battlefields? Who will bury the slain?Who would sire the children? In the last days of the war, each of the races, save the Elves, were on the brink of destruction. There was a parley held, at the Elves insistence, to make a last attempt at peace. The Dwarves were represented by Belrint Veinfinder, the Goblins were represented by Throatcrush of the Illagi tribe and the Humans were represented by Michael Bearstout. Lithald, was present for the Elves. One could say Lithald was compelled to bring the Oracle with him to see the path which lay ahead, another would say the Oracle was especially gifted and saw her own end, but no one could say with any certainty. What was certain in the aftermath of the parley was that all three races who were in conflict believed the entire war had been staged to allow the Elves to be victorious over the overall conflict and had spread a false prophecy across the other races to weaken them to the point of collapse. Lithald used his magic and finally his body to protect the Oracle until the other three present were able to finally vanquish Lithald. The Oracle fell into a trance and spoke to the Goblin, Dwarf and Human. 'You all shall sire races after this day. The Goblins shall pass into the ground and seek darkness and solitude for comfort they shall not find without the companionship of men. The Dwarves shall pass from this land into the land to the West and come again no more to these battle-torn shores. The Humans will breed to fill the lands and they shall lose all but a spark of their magic and fall to more mundane means of butchery to amuse one another.' and then the Oracle awoke, saw what had happened to her race's leader, her mentor and her lover and fell to the ground. The three warriors cut their hands and swore a truce between them," Ironclaw raised his eyes to look at the four humans. "Now the tale shifts perspective, for the elves no longer bore witness to the next months and years. The story shifts to the human perspective."

Ironclaw paused to take another taste of his small drink before continuing. "Bearstout, however, was not merely satisfied with the cessation of battle. He wanted the Oracle to be his plaything, as she was fair of body and face. He bound her and took her with him, the Elven spoil of war."

"When she was brought to his bedchamber, she would not rouse or comply with him in any way and only silently wept. In his rage, Michael Bearstout drew a cursed black dagger and cut the runes for 'Slave' into her back, bound her magic to him using a chaotic ritual of magic and blood. He then took her against her will and, when he was done with her, passed her around to the men of his house to use for their pleasure."

"When they were done with her, she was taken away and placed in the women's quarters. When dawn broke, every man who had abused her that night lay dead and shattered, as if they had fallen from a great height, which may have been a kindness, considering what happened to their lord. Bearstout himself was found screaming incoherently in his bed chambers, huddled in the corner, witnessing some great terror in his blindness, for he had gouged out his own eyes in an effort to stop seeing whatever it was that was frightening him. By the time his servants had found him, he was completely mad from fright. He died days later, unable to gain sustenance for when food was brought before him, his fear rose, but when water alone was brought, the fear calmed for a time."

"While this was going on, the Oracle was living amongst the women but would not speak to anyone. But things were happening to her which she had not foreseen, for an Oracle cannot see her own fate. After a month, she began to show the signs of being with child. Even in past couplings of men and elven women, the gestation of the child was prolonged instead of shortened. This time, however, it appeared the Oracle was nearly halfway to giving birth at just four week. After another month, she appeared ready to birth, her stomach was so distended. As was believed, Elven women did not have long labors. The Oracle screamed out once and gave birth to not one, but four small, malformed by human standards, babies. These children had leather-like skin, overly large eyes, floppy ears and grey skin. Two months later, the Oracle gave birth to four more. These babies did not suckle from their mother but seemed to draw life from anything magical, whether it be a person, a place of an object. Over the remaining twenty-four lunar months, the Oracle gave birth twelve times, giving birth to a total of sixty of the creatures known today as house elves. The Oracle died a year to the day of the last birth."

Hermione gasped. Harry looked ill at the revelation. Emma was scribbling on her pad furiously. Dan was asking silently wondering what this had to do with the current situation and asked.

"An excellent question, Mr Granger. Before the Elves were drawn into the conflict, Lithaldoren, Lithald's eldest son, noted their were human families who had not joined the war and were vociferous about ending it and not falling into the vice of killing. The four families at the lead of this coalition were Potter, Longbottom, Gaunt and Lovegood. Lord David Potter, Lord Peter Longbottom, Lord Malcolm Gaunt and Lord Tiberius Lovegood at first tried to prevent the war and, failing that, limited the scope of the war by preventing anyone involved in the conflict from receiving aid or comfort from their families and withheld sales of their products to those involved in the war. Lithaldoren provided these families with alliances and gifts, much as he had when the four families began their work of founding then building Hogwarts. It was at this point, after the founding of Hogwarts, when Lithaldoren came to visit the four families' heads at that time. Lord Godric Potter, Lord Salazar Gaunt, Lord William Longbottom and Lord Armand Lovegood. As it was their desire to provide the actual work in getting the school started, Lady Rowena Longbottom and Lady Helga Lovegood worked hand in hand with Lord Potter and Lord Gaunt to make the school the penultimate source of magical information and learning in all the world. Godric, Salazar, Armand and William were the best of friends. When it came time to name the houses within the school, Lithaldoren suggested naming the houses based on the founder's animagus form. Godric was a beautiful black gryphon with wingtips covered in red and gold feathers. When he flew it looked as if his wings were lit afire. Salazar's animagus form was a enormous king cobra who was green with a silver stomach with the power to change the colours of his skin to match his surroundings, disappearing from sight. Rowena's animagus form was an enormous raven with metallic bronze colouring at her wingtips, giving the illusion of leaving a streak of gold dust falling behind her as she flew. Helga's animagus form was that of a black badger with a light brown facial colour tending towards blond. In this form it seemed she was immune from nearly all magical attacks. Thus the houses of Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were formed. Lithaldoren, it is said, gave each of the four a material gift for their personal protection, as well as other gifts. It is believed, based on some of the gifts, that Lithaldoren knew his time in these lands was nearly over and wanted to insure the other races for which he had responsibility would become beholden to and protected by the most resilient race being left behind, Humans, and within that race, the best men and women he could find."

"Lithaldoren received an oath from the pride of Auset to guard and protect the members of House Potter and received an oath in turn from Lord Godric Potter to protect and hide the members of the pride away from the eyes of hunters and those who would see them slaughtered for sport or their hides. Godric was also given a sword of mithril, platinum and osmium, enchanted to be light to the wielder and unstoppably sharp, and is bound to House Potter."

"Lithaldoren received an oath from the flight of Illandor to guard and protect the members of House Gaunt and received an oath in turn from Lord Salazar Gaunt to protect and hide the members of the flight away from those who would do the flight harm. Salazar was also given a locket that, when worn, would give the wearer immunity from poisons and mind magic. The locket is bound to House Gaunt."

" Lithaldoren entrusted Lord Armand Lovegood with the Light of Illandrea, giving Armand's descendants the gifts of the Oracles of the Western Vale. He then bade the House of Longbottom to stand as if family to the House of Lovegood, for a time would come when the need would be great and the bravest lion would be elsewhere when the House of Lovegood would be in need."

"Lithaldoren entrusted Lord William Longbottom with the Wall of Oscilliad, a shield which would turn all attacks, physical or magical, against the aggressor. 'In the end,' he had said, 'when all hope seems forlorn, stand at the head of the column, clench your magic then release it with an oath 'Lhach Paur' and your enemy shall fall before you.'"

"These are the four founding Houses. The term 'ancient and noble' refers to any family who can trace their magic for one thousand years or more, although it is my belief that many use this term incorrectly, the Malfoys amongst them."

"The reasons I am telling you this lore is that you, Harry, are the current Lord Potter but can also choose to be Lord Gaunt, as the last person prior to you in the Gaunt line, Tom Riddle, died the night you received that scar," Ironclaw explained, pointing to Harry's forehead. "Your father had a strong claim, but neither ever came forward to claim the title, lands and chattel beholden to House Gaunt."

"Is there any reason I would not want to claim Lordship over House Gaunt?" Harry asked.

"Harry, your father did not take up the Lordship of House Gaunt because it was his belief it would have targeted him as an enemy of Voldemort, though he did not explain the reasons he felt this way. Two days prior to his murder, your father sent a message to Gringott's to ready the Gaunt ring of Lordship. Unfortunately, he was unable to come to Gringott's before he fell. Considering you are already marked for death by Voldemort, I see no additional hazards to you or your line," Ironclaw said meaningfully, quickly looking at Hermione then back again at Harry.

"Are there any other Houses over which I may attain Lordship?" Harry asked.

"Of the forty seven pages," Ironclaw gestured to the stack of parchment on the desk, "only the part of the first lists Houses over which you may claim Lordship. The remainder of the pages indicate Houses in which you are in the line of ascension." Ironclaw looked at the stack of parchment and held his hand out. Steelfist stood and rushed to hand Ironclaw the top page.

"In addition to the Potter House with nine seats on the Wizengamot and Gaunt House with six seats, you may also claim Lordship over the Houses of Abbott with three seats, Ackerman with two seats, Ainsworth with one seat, Autenberry with two seats, Bailey with one seat, Bradford with one seat, Carlisle with four seats, Forester with three seats, Hawkins with two seats, Lancaster with twelve seats, Mercer with two seats, Pemberton with six seats, Rowntree with two seats, Spalding with four seats, Thwaite with one seat, Wembley with eight and York with nineteen seats (15 + 73). Each of these has lands, vaults and properties associated with them," Ironclaw explained.

"What do I need to do to claim Lordship over these houses?" Harry asked, and gently squeezed Hermione's hand.

Ironclaw smiled a goblin smile. "You need to simply place the ring of Lordship on your finger and sign a few Ministry forms, which we can complete and file for you."

"Um...Ironclaw. I already have my Potter family ring I am wearing," Harry said, wondering how he would wear nineteen rings.

"The ring will only be visible on your finger when you need it. Let me assure you that it is easily possible for you to wear all of the rings on your right hand ring finger. We will need to insure the Gaunt ring is the next ring you place on your ring finger as Gaunt was also a Founding House," Ironclaw explained.

"Although there may be many reasons to not do this," Harry began with a rueful grin, "let us get these rings and move on to new business," he turned to look at the three Grangers, his smile taking on a quality of warmth.

"Steelfist, please collect the Rings of Lordship as we discussed," Ironclaw said.

Steelfist rapidly left the office to do as Ironclaw had asked.

"Perhaps we can start with some of the new business while Steelfist takes care of his task?" Ironclaw asked.

Harry looked back to Ironclaw and nodded.

"Excellent!" Ironclaw said, smiling and clapping his hands together, to the surprise of the four. "Now that you have accepted the title Lord Potter, you no longer need a guardian in the Ministry's eyes. In the muggle, or mundane, world, your Uncle and Aunt never completed the paperwork required to become your official guardian. Before anyone else has an opportunity to claim your guardianship there, if there is someone else you trust," Ironclaw paused and looked at the Grangers momentarily before looking back to Harry, "then we can provide the appropriate paperwork, have you sign it, then have your desired guardians sign it, we can have it filed, pre-dated to the day after your parents passed. That is, of course, if you wish to have a choice in who your guardians are," Ironclaw said, looking intently at the young wizard before him.

Harry sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. Here was finally the opportunity to take the reins of his future. He felt Hermione squeeze his hand. The warmth of her hand felt comforting and inviting to him. He then felt arms encircling him and knew it was Emma. He was now sitting in her lap. He had not realized he was crying.

Emma began quietly speaking to Harry. "Harry, I know your past has not been as good as it should have been, but please know that Dan and I would be happy to be your guardians."

Both Emma and Dan realized Harry was emotionally regressing when he spoke. "Why would you do this for me?" he asked, barely intelligible due to his crying.

"Harry, both of us feel your life before now has been rather unfair and we want to make it better for you. Why you? Considering we've come to know you quite well through Hermione's letters, and meeting you has only proved to us you are a nice, honourable young man. You deserve a better life, Harry," she said, looking at the expression on Harry's face. "If those reasons aren't enough for you, then perhaps the fact that you are Hermione's best friend is a good enough reason for us to offer you the protection of our guardianship."

Dan stood and placed his hand on Harry's shoulder. "Harry, we're offering a choice. We are inviting you, not compelling you, to accept our offer," he said softly, "Remember what I said to you at St. Mungo's. My perspective is that your presence in our home and our lives will enrich our lives and give Emma and me an opportunity to get to know you."

Harry had stopped crying and nodded. "I would like that very much, Mr. and Mrs. Granger," he said, fearfully looking into Dan's eyes, expecting to awaken from this dream at any moment.

"We will have the paperwork drawn up and ready for your signatures before you leave here today," Ironclaw said.

Harry was feeling a bit embarrassed sitting on Emma's lap. He stood and began apologising to Ironclaw. "I'm sorry, sir, I..."

Ironclaw waved away his concerns. "Young man," he said kindly, "my usual interactions with wizards and witches is not nearly as pleasant or as honest as working with you. I have spent almost one hundred and fifty years interacting with them and I believe in all of that time, I have had no interaction with them that has been more pleasurable or honourable as my interactions with you. It is my understanding that, had I met your uncle in Gringott's, he never would have left the dragon pens in any recognizable form. Based on what I know, you are a remarkably resilient young man and it is my privilege to be here to help you. If you're apologising for telling me or expressing the truth, then I certainly do not wish to hear it, for their would be nothing to be sorry for," Ironclaw expressed earnestly.

Harry nodded.

Steelfist re-entered his office with a large, green velvet case and handed the case to Ironclaw, bowed and sat down at his desk again.

"Steelfist, please prepare the mundane guardianship paperwork for Lord Potter and Mr. and Mrs. Granger to sign," Ironclaw said.

Steelfist nodded then spoke into a tube on his desk in Gobbledygook, "_Bring the paperwork for Lord Potter's guardianship to Daniel and Emma Granger to my office immediately!_" He then looked at Ironclaw, more for Harry's benefit, "The paperwork shall be available shortly, Sir."

There was a knock on the door. Ironclaw looked at Steelfist. Steelfist stood and said "_Enter!"_ in Gobbledygook.

A young goblin entered and, seeing there were humans present, announced in English, "Director Amelia Bones of the Ministry, as requested by Elector Ironclaw, does request entrance."

Steelfist looked to Ironclaw for approval, which Ironclaw gave in the form of a nod.

"We thank the Director for her presence and invite her to enter," Steelfist said formally.

The young goblin opened the door fully and Amelia and Susan entered. Steelfist clapped his hands together twice and two more plush chairs materialized in the room for Amelia to use. Susan sat next to Hermione and the two girls smiled at one another.

"I understand that Lord Potter is prepared to accept additional titles and responsibilities?" Amelia asked, looking at Harry who, to her, appeared to have been crying recently.

"That is accurate, Director Bones," Ironclaw said. "We are ready to begin?" he asked of Harry.

Harry nodded once more.

Ironclaw stood while opening the case. He gestured for Harry to stand in front of him. "This should be somewhat familiar to you, Harry," Ironclaw said and removed the first ring from the case.

"Do you, Harry James Potter, of your own free will, wish to make the attempt to wear the Ring of Lordship for House Gaunt, knowing that if the Ring and Magic deny your bid you will be slain and knowing that if the Ring and Magic accept your bid, you freely accept the rights and responsibilities of this stations?"

Harry looked at Ironclaw, straightened his shoulders and said, "I accept the risks of my own free will."

Ironclaw placed the ring in Harry's left hand. Harry took the ring and placed the overly-large ring on the ring finger of his right hand. As with the Potter ring, could feel a pressure pushing on him, similar to the pressure during the accident, but different in that it wasn't attacking him. There was a flash of light centred on the ring as it shrank to fit Harry's finger.

"Gringott's and The People recognise Lord Harry James Potter as the rightful Lord of House Gaunt," Ironclaw said formally and bowed low to Harry, which Harry returned, splaying the fingers of his hands open to indicate he intended no harm or threat to The People and closed his eyes, indicating he trusted Elector Ironclaw to bring no harm or foul to him.

"The Ministry of Magic and the Crown recognise Lord Harry James Potter as the rightful Lord of House Gaunt," Amelia Bones said formally.

Harry then said, "I, Lord Harry James Potter, do accept the rights and responsibilities of my station with honour, strength, wisdom and courage."

The Gaunt ring then became invisible. Harry looked up at Ironclaw then to Director Bones, who had a quizzical look on her face, then to Hermione who was smiling at him with her dimples showing. This got Harry to smile as well. He noticed that when he smiled, Susan smiled at him as well. He then looked back at Ironclaw. "One down," he said.

Ironclaw removed the next ring from the case. "Do you, Harry James Potter, of your own free will, wish to make the attempt to wear the Ring of Lordship for House..." and on it went until they had completed the York ring ritual.

By this time, Amelia was showing significant concern. "Excuse me, Lord Potter, but are you planning on voting all of your seats on the Wizengamot?" she asked.

Harry leaned over between Susan and Hermione and whispered softly in Hermione's ear, his eyes never leaving Amelia. Hermione turned and whispered into Emma's ear. Emma looked at Dan, who was nodding slightly, then whispered back into Hermione's ear who in turn whispered back into Harry's ear. Harry got a serious expression on his face and said, "I have spoken of this with my advisers and shall be removing my votes from abeyance and shall be voting them as I deem appropriate, as is my responsibility to my Houses, The Crown and The People."

Amelia looked at Harry, then Hermione, then Emma, then Dan and finally at Ironclaw. "I see," she responded, looking once more at Harry.

-oOoOo-

Once Amelia and Susan had left, with Harry's bid of thanks for Amelia's assistance, Ironclaw once more brought the discussion back to business.

"Harry, considering your notoriety and the danger you may be subject to, I would like to extend an offer to you which we at Gringott's do not extend to many," Ironclaw said.

When Harry said nothing, Ironclaw continued.

"We wish to offer you, at the lowest cost I am permitted to give them to you at, which is our cost, warding for your guardians' home and business. While the business location cannot be made unplottable or placed under the Fidelius, we are able to do this for their home," Ironclaw explained. "This would help protect you all from potentially unwanted attention," he said, looking at Harry then meaningfully looking at Hermione and back to Harry again.

Dan and Emma had no understanding of wards or their abilities, but had some inkling as to what 'unplottable' might mean. Hermione was speechless; the Goblins almost never gave things away without making a profit. Harry had no understanding of the possible costs involved.

"Why would you give this service to Harry at your cost?" Hermione asked.

At the same time, Harry asked, "What would be the cost to put on the best security possible?"

Harry and Hermione looked at one another in embarrassment while Ironclaw smiled at the two of them.

"Let me answer the young lady's question first," Ironclaw said. Hermione smiled and blushed.

"We would offer them to Lord Potter at our cost for two reasons. His continued safety is good for business in that Gringott's now has an active head of nineteen high-value major accounts, seventeen of which have sat idle, only able to collect interest. This allows Gringott's, with Harry's permission," Ironclaw gestured to Harry, who nodded, "to make alterations to the investments of these accounts to maximize returns, thus increasing revenue generated for the accounts, thus putting more gold in Gringott's vaults. Additionally, this warding can be later advertised to clients who may wish warding in the future. While we would not specifically mention Harry's name, the Potter family name or the Gaunt family name, we could certainly use the names of four or six of the other families over which Harry holds Lordship to promote our services without letting it be known 'The-boy-who-lived' is under Goblin wards."

Hermione nodded her understanding. "_I can see how this would be good for their business," _Hermione thought.

"The second reason is perhaps even more self-serving than the first. For far too many generations of The People and Humans, we have seen too many power-hungry wizards seek dominion over our collective lives. This darkened blight upon the land did not start with Gellert Grindewald and will not end with he self-proclaimed Lord Voldemort unless there is a change," Ironclaw said, somewhat sadly. "When Goblins saw the aftermath of the War of Races, we thought the future doomed until we saw the good that came from the Founding Families and the alliances the Goblin tribes forged to bring The People up from the ashes," Ironclaw explained.

"As to the cost, merely the cost of the time of our warders and the spell components they need to ward the property and a surcharge for the magic. An approximate estimate is one thousand galleons for the work," Ironclaw said.

"Please have the wards erected as soon as possible, Ironclaw. I want my family as safe as is reasonably possible," Harry said.

Ironclaw looked at Steelfist. Steelfist nodded and spoke into his tube in Gobbledygook. A voice replied almost immediately. "The work shall be completed by end of day tomorrow, Lord... Harry," Steelfist said.

"Thank you, Gentlemen," Harry said with a sigh of relief.

-oOoOo-

Albus had finished the tidying he liked to do upon returning from a vacation and had finished adding the personal touches to his quarters, adding a knick-knack here and there he had acquired during his week-long sojourn. When he entered his office again on the twenty-ninth of June, he knew something was not quite right. Fawkes was sitting upon his perch, preening as he would do, his desk was in a state of slight disarray, but that, too was normal. He began looking about more thoughtfully, trying to discern the issue, when Professor McGonagall interrupted him to discuss OWL and NEWT results, which she had just received. The two of them retired to the staff lounge for lunch and a discussion, which turned into afternoon tea, dinner and supper, as various other professors who lived year round at the school stopped in to have non-school related discussions with the Headmaster and the other professors.

It was one o'clock in the morning when Albus sat up in bed and realized with a panic what had been wrong in his office. He quickly dressed and went up to his office to look at the array of monitoring devices he had which were tied to Harry, the wards at Number Four Privet Drive and other places of interest to him. He grew concerned when the device monitoring the strength of the wards was no longer working at all. The divining apparatus tied to Harry's location was spinning slowly in circles, unable to locate Harry. The location clock for Harry pointed to 'Home', which Albus could not understand. "_How could young Harry be at home yet the wards are not working? What has happened?"_ he thought in deep puzzlement. He then went to the fireplace and attempted to floo Arabella Figg, but she was not answering. Albus decided this could not wait so walked to the edge of the wards and apparated to Privet Drive.

Three o'clock in the morning on Privet Drive found Albus scratching his beard. The wards were clearly no longer in affect and there was no one at home. There was a For Sale sign posted on the immaculate lawn. He then walked to Arabella's house to speak with her but she was not at home and the young woman she had minding her cats let him know that Arabella had left on holiday two weeks prior to take care of a sick relation and would not be returning for at least another week. A quick obliviation and Albus apparated back to Hogwarts. Unable to sleep, he wrote out a list of tasks to be done when the light of dawn finally came.

When he finished his list, he began reviewing the Daily Prophets sitting on his desk, quickly shuffling through them to see their headlines. The headlines he read seemed to unravel all of his well-laid plans. Yesterday's paper's headlines read "New Power Block Within Wizengamot! Eighty-Eight Seats Held In Abeyance Now Active! York Family Block Voting For The First Time In One Hundred And Seven Years!" and the prior day, "Sirius Black Found Innocent! Peter Pettigrew Hunted As Potter Murderer! Order Of Merlin Revoked!" The one beneath it looked far worse for him. "Potter Heir Found By Gringotts! Potter Will Reading Uncovers Truths!" _Yes,_ he thought, _all those plans in tatters_.

-oOoOo-


	4. Summer Plans

-oOoOo-

Over the next several weeks, life settled down for Harry at the Grangers. Harry had met his godfather, Sirius Black, in his private room at St. Mungo's where he would be spending most of the next two to four months recovering from the physical and mental ravages of having spent nine and a half years in Azkaban. Sirius had good days and bad days but the staff recognized that his best days were the days Harry and Hermione visited him, which was at least twice a week.

Dan and Emma had set down some ground rules the first day concerning when bedroom doors could be closed and how the division of labour worked around the house as well as the requirements for having additional friends over. They encouraged Harry to visit Sirius as often as was practical, and as it turned out, there were any number of off-duty aurors who were willing to meet the two on the Knights Bus and accompany them to see Sirius.

Dan and Emma were frequently reminded of Harry's innocence when it came to girls. One night they had been watching the Miss Universe United Kingdom special. Harry hadn't quite understood the reason Dan was so interested in watching the program but was fascinated, along with Emma and Hermione, about the various categories the women competed in. Hermione was of the age when her self-image of body was developing and was hoping she would develop in those ways soon. It was during the swimsuit competition when the measurements of one of the contestants was announced as being a nearly perfect thirty-six – twenty-four – thirty-six. When Emma asked Harry if he knew what that meant, Harry thought for a moment and answered, "Ninety-six!" He received a huge hug from Emma and Hermione for that answer and a wry smile from Dan. Needless to say, this answer made Dan a much less stressed father and made Hermione a slightly embarrassed, but much less self-conscious girl.

The Grangers summer normally culminated in a family vacation and this summer was no different. There were some challenges and some culture shock to be dealt with. While some of these challenges and some of the culture shock was apparent in Harry's behaviour when it came to being a part of a loving, whole family, a good deal of challenges and a significant amount of culture shock was being experienced by the Grangers; Hermione included.

July started like a normal month. Dan and Emma had the practise closed for a brief holiday to insure all of the necessary paperwork was in place when they hit upon their first snag: Harry had no passport. When they discussed it the evening of June thirtieth and brought Harry and Hermione into the depths of the discussion, Harry, supported by Hermione, suggested they visit Gringott's to determine what the Goblins could do.

Apparently the answer was anything, for a price.

Harry, Hermione, Emma and Dan entered the lobby of Gringott's. Emma and Dan started heading towards the teller lines when Harry took Emma's arm and Hermione took Dan's arm and the the children directed them to the concierge desk. The concierge sensed the four humans approached the desk and looked up, noting two of them were without magic. _More muggleborns not understanding how a proper bank worked._ The goblin looked up with a sneer and immediately realised his error. Looking down on his desk, he pushed the correct button for this client's account manager just as they reached his desk.

"Good morning, Sir. Senior Account Manager Steelfist told me I should come to this desk when visiting Gringotts, especially when I needed additional assistance," Harry said respectfully, throwing the goblin off his usual game, having never dealt with a respectful client in the past. Fortunately for the concierge, Steelfist walked onto the bank floor that very moment and approached the group from behind, making himself known by walking with heavy footfalls as he got closer. The group turned as one at the sound of his approach.

"Lord Potter and guests, you honour us with your presence. How may Gringotts be of service to you this morning?" Steelfist asked.

"It is good to see you, Senior Account Manager. I sincerely hope you are doing well," Harry said with a smile, "and that your caverns are filling with the gold of your enemies."

"With your Madam Bones working to revisit the death eater trials from the last decade, I am certain our caverns will see a few additional tons. Thank you for supporting that legislation," Steelfist said.

"It was the right thing to do," Harry said simply.

"Shall we retire to my office to discuss your business here today, Lord Potter?" Steelfist asked.

"An excellent idea, Senior Account Manager," Harry replied with a smile.

Steelfist lead the four through the labyrinth of hallways leading to his office. Once the door closed behind them, Steelfist turned and extended his hand to Harry.

Harry smiled and took Steelfist's wrist in his. "I do hope, Harry, that everything is well with you. I wanted you to know that in addition to the wards placed on your guardians' home and business, Gringott's has added reaction squads as we detected the wards at the business tested several times last week."

Harry was about to speak when Steelfist thought he had anticipated the young Lord's question.

"There is no additional cost for having the reactions squads on standby. You're only charged if an when they respond," Steelfist assured Harry.

"Steelfist, my family is priceless to me. If it cost me everything I had to keep them alive, happy and safe, I wouldn't care if you emptied every vault I had," Harry explained.

Steelfist shook his head. "My apologies, Harry. After seventy years of dealing with wizards whose wealth was more important than their own well-being, it takes some time to remember there are three wizards in recent history who are not that way. I shall, however, make a note on your file as well as the files of Lord Longbottom and Lord Lovegood to insure I don't make a similar mistake. Now I am sure you didn't come today for merely a social visit. How may I be of service?" Steelfist asked.

"The Granger family has a routine of taking a family vacation every summer. For me to go, I need a passport. I am hoping Gringott's can facilitate me getting one as well as provide me with some means of accessing my allowance vault without actually having to carry sacks of galleons with me," Harry explained.

"Where had you and your family planned on travelling for your vacation, Dan?" Steelfist asked.

"We normally go to the south of France during the summer," Dan said.

"Did you want to stay in your château while you are there, Harry?"

Emma and Dan chorused in surprise "What?"

"We really should spend some time going over the list of properties you own, Harry. You may also want to give me free reign to purchase additional properties of interest as they come onto the market. We can generally guarantee at least a twenty percent return on investment minimum for properties Gringott's purchases on behalf of clients," Steelfist said, then turned to Dan and Emma, "Harry owns what I have been told is one of the more beautiful properties in the south of France. It is situated on eight hundred and eight-six hectares, has eighteen reception rooms, twenty-nine bedrooms, fourteen formal bathrooms, has an entrance onto a private, two-mile long beach and is maintained by nine house elves. Harry's passport will be available within the next few minutes, along with all of the necessary visas and documentation necessary to travel to any country. Similar passports for the three of you will be available at the same time."

"We already have our passports," Dan said, indicating the three Grangers.

"You have your normal passports, Dan. The passports Gringott's issues to major account holders and the members of their families don't expire and have a few additional features. They automatically contain the appropriate visa or stamps needed to enter the country of your choice, act as port keys to the Gringott's branch closest to your destination of choice and function as emergency port keys in the event you are threatened, injured or otherwise incapacitated and cannot be blocked by anti-port key wards or spells," Steelfist explained.

"How is that possible?" Emma asked.

Steelfist, Hermione and Harry chorused, "Magic!" Steelfist laughed for a moment.

"I am not laughing at you, Dan and Emma. These two are simply and clearly truly refreshing people," Steelfist said, indicating Harry and Hermione.

"On another matter, Harry, Lord Black received your late fathers bequests. He insisted, however, that you keep and accept your father's broom, even if you only fly it once. He wanted you to know that your father loved to fly," Steelfist said. "He also insisted that he be allowed to return your father's map to you if you will allow him to copy the instructions for making the maps which are apparently somewhere in your mother's papers."

"Of course he can have copies of the instructions. Can Gringott's facilitate that? Can the broom stay in one of my vaults until such time that I am ready to take possession of it?" Harry asked, emotion evident in his voice.

"But of course, Harry. We shall keep it in the primary Potter vault until you are ready for it. Speaking of which, since you have not visited your vaults yet, would you and your family like to take a tour of your founders' wings or any of the other family vaults you have?" Steelfist asked.

"What are these founders' wings, sir?" Hermione asked. Harry took her hand and gently squeezed it.

"An excellent question, Hermione. May I call you Hermione?" Steelfist asked. Hermione nodded, an embarrassed smile on her face.

"Thank you, Hermione. Most wizards who bank with Gringott's have general accounts, meaning they have accounts much like customers of muggle banks. Some customers have small, trunk-sized vaults for storing papers or small quantities of gems, galleons they want as a savings or the like. There is a small annual fee for this type of vault. Still fewer customers have vaults, such as Harry's allowance vault, which Harry has visited in the past. This small room-sized walk-in vault is typically the largest vault most wizards who have vaults use. There is also an annual fee for these vaults. Perhaps a few dozen clients, and note the difference in classification, have larger vaults, perhaps the size of my office here. These are generally equipped with bookcases or other furnishings to assist the client in sorting or organizing their more precious possessions. Depending upon the holdings and investments these clients have and the contracts Gringott's have with them, these vaults are provided as part of a package of services provided to the client by Gringott's. Other than Harry's allowance vault, Harry has three of these larger vaults. Harry, you also have twenty-nine vaults of the next size up. At Gringott's, we refer to these as Estate Vaults. There are fifteen other Gringott's clients who have this size vault and most of them only have one. These are usually ten to twenty thousand square metres and contain furnishings and equipment to aid the client in the organization and storage of possessions. As I recall, at least five of the Estate Vaults are dedicated to books. These are provided free of charge to clients who have monthly transactions exceeding one million galleons. There are only four facilities larger than estate vaults and these are founders' wings, which are, shall we say, 'unique'. They are difficult to describe, and if you are in any rush today, we should probably not try to fit even one of those into today's visit as its best to warn the handlers of a founder wishing to enter their wing. You are the first Lord to actually take on the mantel of two founding families. The wings are far enough apart that it would take some time to visit both in the same day."

"Perhaps we should wait on those then as we still have some shopping to do today for our vacation," Emma explained.

Steelfist smiled a goblin smile then composed himself. "Emma, this is Gringott's. The amazing young man for which you are a guardian is a Founder. If you wish to purchase something, you have but to ask and our shoppers will insure it is awaiting you in the lobby when you are ready to leave or delivered to your home at your convenience."

"Steelfist, while we are more than comfortable and are able to take care of nearly every need, do you know Harry's net worth? I am not asking to be rude, Harry. I simply think you may need an education in estate planning and financial management based on what I've heard today," Dan explained.

Steelfist nodded. "I am certainly glad young Harry is with the two of you. I think some wizarding families were attempting to adopt Harry just to gain access to his vaults. They would have been sorely disappointed when they were informed they would have no access whatsoever to his vaults, much as I am sure you both realize you would have no access to Harry's vaults except his allowance vault, and then only if he granted access to you."

Dan nodded. "The last thing I would want to do is take money from Harry," Dan said and was then interrupted by Harry.

"Dad, you know I feel guilty about being a burden on you and Mum..." Harry was cut off by Emma.

"Harry, Dan and I both love our jobs and we make far more than the average non-magical person. We want you to keep your money for when you become an adult. It will help you go to university and give you a nice nest egg for when you find the right girl and settle down to get married and have children," Emma said, noting that Harry looked at Hermione with a shy smile when she had talked about finding the right girl. _Is there more to these two they're not telling me? I guess I will have a talk with the both of them over the coming week without Dan to scare Harry with the 'Father of Girl Child' monster hovering around._

"Harry, I know one of my tellers wanted to talk with you and I promised him I would ask and I am sure you and Hermione would at least like to visit your allowance vault. Would you two like to go do that?" Steelfist asked jovially.

Hermione looked at Steelfist with questioning eyes but didn't ask anything. Steelfist caught her gaze and looked at Emma and Dan before looking back at Hermione.

"That sounds like fun, Harry! Can we see if there are any books in there?" Hermione asked with genuine excitement, even though she realized Steelfist want to speak with her parents alone.

Harry had a shy smile on his face. "I would like to do that with you, Hermione." He then looked at Dan and Emma. "Can we go, Mum and Dad?" Harry asked, clearly excited to look through one of his vaults.

"That would be fine, Harry. Just come back to Steelfist's office when you're done or we can meet you at your allowance vault when we're done here," Dan said, never tiring of hearing the son he had always wanted calling him "Dad".

Harry and Hermione stood and and they gave both Dan and Emma hugs, Harry saying "Thanks Dad!" to Dan as he hugged him.

Steelfist spoke into the tube on his desk in Gobbledygook and a young goblin knocked on the door and then entered.

"This is GoldFinder, one of our Junior Tellers with a uncanny ability of finding lost coins, hence his name. He helped ameliorate a difficult situation with a challenging client last week and, as a reward he asked if he could meet with and assist one of our most-valued clients. I believe he nearly fainted, which is an accomplishment for a goblin, when I told him I would ask the Great Lord Harry James Potter to speak with him. GoldFinder, could you please take Lord Potter to vault six hundred and eighty-seven, his allowance vault. He is permitted to remove anything he cares to from this vault," Steelfist said.

"Sir! Yes! Sir! It would be a great honour for me to help Lord Potter, Sir!" GoldFinder said, opening and holding the door for Harry and Hermione to exit. He followed them out of the office then lead them down to the carts.

Steelfist waited and watched as his office door closed. He then silently counted to thirty. Once he was satisfied Harry and Hermione were on their way to Harry's vault, Steelfist looked at Dan and Emma and continued the conversation.

"Emma, while I commend your attitude and your protective nature for Harry's future, I feel I need to explain something about scales and orders of magnitude. If you don't mind me prying, what would you say your dental practice's gross revenue for last year was?" Steelfist asked.

"The gross revenue was in the neighbourhood of seven hundred and seventy thousand pounds last year," Emma said.

"We should have you open a business account with Gringott's to manage your funds. You'll pay less in taxes and make more in interest from your deposits. Which bank do you bank with?" Steelfist asked.

"Barclays," Emma said.

"Excellent. If you would like, I can have the necessary paperwork available for you to sign today. I can guarantee a ninety percent reduction in taxes and at least quadruple your interest starting today without you having to switch banks, as Barclays is one of our non-magical extension of the Gringott's family," Steelfist said then continued. "I did not ask you to sell you services. I asked you to give you some idea of the orders of magnitude involved with Harry. I would like you to count to ten, Emma," Steelfist said.

"Very well. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten," Emma said, looking at Steelfist in open curiosity.

"In the time it took you to count to ten, Harry's combined investments, savings and other payable notes appreciated more than one million galleons in value. Whether it is the five gold mines he owns in South Africa, the palladium, gold and platinum mines he owns in Siberia or the half-interest in the goldmine he has in Canada, along with the interests and stocks he had in oil exploration and other petroleum companies as well as other magical and non-magical stocks, bonds, financial notes, stock and other monetary and tangible concerns. Should Harry need to buy, for example, an island, or a castle, or any other thing he chose to purchase, he has the means to do so. I believe this was the primary reason Madam Bones was so concerned about Harry accepting Lordship over so many families. He has control over the single largest block of financial power in the magical and non-magical worlds. The account fees Gringott's charges Harry are one tenth of one percent and Gringott's received one point two thousand million galleons in account fees last year alone. That was before Harry allowed us to activate the wealth of the families whose funds were tied up in simple interest-bearing accounts. I suppose what I am really trying to tell you is that with Harry's approval, you could place your practice on the market and become full-time parents, enjoying watching these two wonderfully bright and amazing children grow up rather than only having three days a week to spend with them." Steelfist explained.

To say the least, Emma and Dan were in shock.

"Would you like to know just how honourable Harry is?" Steelfist asked.

Dan and Emma could only nod their heads.

"The late Vernon Dursley, Harry's uncle by marriage, had a sister who was made from the same mould as Vernon. Due to the non-magical laws, Harry would have received all of the insurance money from the Dursleys' deaths as well as the proceeds from the sale of their home in Little Whinging, to a combined sum of nearly one million pounds. I have to be honest and say when Harry did what he did, he had no idea how much money he had. He asked Gringott's to set these proceeds up in a trust to insure Margaret Tatum Dursley, Vernon's hateful sister, wouldn't be kicked out of her home as we informed Harry she was losing money every month on her dog breeding business and likely wouldn't make it through the year in her home because Vernon was no longer supplementing her income. It should be noted that Harry actually owns the home and the land it is on as he bought it and asked us to reduce her rent to half of what it was so she could have a better life, possibly improving her disposition. He felt badly for her because she lost her brother, her sister-in-law and her nephew in the accident. He tells me he doesn't feel guilty, but I don't entirely believe him. And again, Harry did this before he knew what his own holdings were. When I asked him about the money, he said he was less interested in the money than in making sure his uncle's sister could celebrate her late brother's generosity. Granted, the way we have the principle funds invested, the thousand pound monthly stipend we are sending her is just a portion of the interest on the funds so it will last the remainder of her life, but I wanted you to know." Steelfist paused for a moment as Emma had tears running down her face and was being held by Dan.

"I do not want to push you into making a decision, but I would ask you to seriously consider putting your practice on the market, performing the transaction through Gringott's and spending as much time as you can raising those two children. You both mean a great deal to that young man and are the parents of the first person to ever show him the love of a friend and, from what he tells me, she is the first person he can remember ever giving him a hug. Although I am a goblin, and we treat children like the precious gifts from the goddess that they are, I ask you. No. I beg you to spend the rest of your lives raising, taking care of and loving your children. I am not saying don't have hobbies or things of your own, but while dentistry seems to be rewarding for both of you, I think you both have higher, more profound callings in you. You just need the time to find out what they are," Steelfist said passionately, then fell silent.

Dan was the first to find his voice as Emma was still crying. "Steelfist, you give us much to think about, but I believe you have Harry's best interests at heart. I do not know if goblins make friends with non-magical humans, but I would be honoured to call you friend for looking out for my son, my daughter, my wife and me."

Steelfist smiled. "I would be equally honoured to call you and Emma friend, Dan. Had the two of you not passed the background investigation Ironclaw ordered, you'd never have been offered an opportunity to become Harry's guardians. Both Ironclaw and I were impressed by what we saw," he said.

"Background check?" Emma asked suspiciously.

"Unlike Albus Dumbledore, we weren't going to leave the boy on someone's doorstep with nothing but a note. Gringott's is most thorough, although it saddens me to tell you that one of Dan's childhood bullies was killed in Her Majesty's Prison system. Almost as much as it saddens me that Vernon Dursley was killed in a road accident which took thirteen other lives, including his wife, Petunia and their son, Dudley. Although from what we have been able to piece together, Petunia was almost as much a victim as Harry, and Dudley was being trained to become the same as Vernon." Steelfist explained.

"Which bully?" Dan asked curiously.

"Michael William Sinclair, who I believe you knew as Mikey Bills in primary school," Steelfist said from memory.

"The world is a better place without him," Dan said, shaking his head. "If I recall, he was doing life for killing his own daughter."

"You are well-informed," Steelfist said.

"As are you, or so it seems," Emma said.

"Normally Gringott's does not permit a copy of our investigative report to be given to their subjects, but considering who our mutual person of interest is, I think it will help you to understand how important Harry is," Steelfist said, then removed a blue, fifteen-centimetre-thick file folder from his desk. "This is the file we have on you, Emma, prior to your meeting Dan." He set this on his desk and removed two thicker green folders of the same thickness. "These are the reports we have on Dan before you two met." He reached into his drawer and pulled out two yellow, twelve-centimetre-thick folders. "This is what we collected on the two of you since you met." He removed another thick beige folder. "This is copies of all of the official paperwork related to your business since it was formed." He pulled out two red ten-centimetre-thick folders. "These are the information we were able to collect on your daughter. I recommend that when you review this folder that you have something at hand to calm your nerves, especially when you get to the section marked 'October 1991' as that will not be entirely pleasant reading for you. If you would like a summary of it, your daughter had become distraught and was considering asking you to remove her from Hogwarts as few there understood her overriding need to learn and share that knowledge. She hid in a bathroom. A mountain troll was let into Hogwarts by an instructor as a diversion. The troll entered the bathroom Hermione had chosen to hide in, Harry entered the bathroom and killed the troll and he and your daughter have been inseparable since." Steelfist said. "One other condition. You may read these here, in my office. They may not leave my office as alarms will sound the moment they cross the threshold of my door."

Dan and Emma were certain Hermione still had not explained everything about the troll incident. "Describe a troll for me, please, Steelfist," Emma said.

"A European mountain troll averages four metres in height, weighs approximately one thousand kilograms, has the intelligence of a non-magical dog, is extremely aggressive and typically carries a club or stout tree trunk weighing one hundred kilograms or more," Steelfist explained.

Dan swallowed loudly then asked, just to be certain, "And you are certain Harry killed one of these things? Does he know he killed it?"

Steelfist opened the folder and sat in the chair that appeared next to Dan so that he could re-read the information while Dan and Emma read it for the first time. "Ah yes. I am certain Harry knows he killed it. According to a pensieve account taken from Harry, which he freely provided us, his one and only concern was quote '...the nice girl who was always helping me with my homework and was teaching me how to write essays...' and then quote 'The troll disappeared but the walls, ceiling and floor of the bathroom turned red, brown and yellow and smelled something awful...' The post-incident investigation, done by Hogwarts staff, members of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and a careful study of Harry's provided memory indicate fairly clearly that Harry, likely through another case of hysterical magic, disintegrated the troll. Here is a picture taken from Harry's memory," Steelfist said and showed Dan and Emma the picture. There was an enormous, grey creature standing near Hermione. It swung its club down and shattered a row of sinks Hermione had just run out from beneath. It then looked at where Hermione was running and took a step to follow her and then it just disappeared as the scene changed. There was now a thick, oozing layer of red, with brown and yellow spots, running down the walls and dripping into the muck already on the floor. When Harry looked back at Hermione, she was clearly in a state of shock, but was completely clean, devoid of any of the troll spray befouling the rest of the room. It even appeared, when Harry looked down at the floor, the two children were walking an inch above the floor until they got into the corridor, when the memory and the muck ended.

Dan and Emma were in shock. Emma began crying. "She could have been killed!" Emma sobbed, falling into Dan's opened arms and burying her face in his chest.

"But she wasn't, Cuddle Cat. Harry was there and saved her," Dan said, hoping this would help calm Emma down.

"Yes but he could have been killed too!" Emma said, sobbing all the harder.

"Emma. Love. Their fine. Their safe. They just went down to Harry's vault. They'll be back here any minute now and you'll be able to wrap your arms around both of them and tell them how much you love them," Dan said.

"Emma," Steelfist began, also trying to comfort the young woman, "I would also like to point out that there has never before been a case of a troll being allowed to enter Hogwarts and the teachers are now inspected rigorously before being allowed to teach at Hogwarts, while before only the headmaster of the school had oversight. Now a prospective candidate must have their background checked by the DMLE as well as approved by a seventy-five percent majority of the Hogwarts Board of Governors," Steelfist said with a smile, "which means you, I am sure, will have a significant amount of sway over every single teacher hired at Hogwarts."

"How is that, Steelfist?" Dan asked.

Steelfist couldn't contain his laughter. He laughed for a few moments then brought himself back in control, though he couldn't stop smiling. "Harry is in control of eight of the twelve seats on the board of governors," he explained.

Emma got her emotions under control but was still concerned, "But what happened to the teacher that let the troll into the school? Certainly he was arrested!" Emma exclaimed.

Steelfist became instantly serious. "No, Emma. It pains me to say this because it paints Harry in a somewhat poor light, but I want you to know Harry is neither a psychopath nor a sociopath. If anything, he has the uncanny luck to always be where he is needed most. There is no elegant way to say this, so I will be blunt. The teacher was neither reprimanded nor arrested because Harry killed him."

Emma began crying again, but not out of fear for her children. "Please tell us what happened," Emma said. "We need to know."

"I cannot show you the memory directly because you have no magic yourselves, but I have a wizarding photograph, much like you just watched, taken from Harry's memory as well as a transcript of the event," Steelfist said.

Emma just nodded. Dan was still too shocked. _My God! If he isn't a psychopath or a sociopath, what is with him doing all this killing? _Dan thought.

Steelfist went to his desk and removed a nine-centimetre-thick, black folder labelled 'Voldemort'. He sat back down next to Dan, flipped through the folder and removed the wizarding photograph and the transcript of the event. Steelfist read the transcript aloud while the photograph played out the scene, Steelfist's reading almost perfectly in synchronization with the moving of the lips of the people in the picture. The picture ended as Harry's vision faded to black after once more tucking the Philosopher's Stone into his right front pants pocket.

Dan was shaking his head as he held Emma. "My God! Steelfist, has Harry had any grief counselling to help him cope with the aftermath of these situations?"

Steelfist shook his head, "Apparently the headmaster awarded him house points and acted as if nothing special happened. It is Gringott's understanding that not even the DMLE was notified of this incident."

"A man died! A man who was trying to kill our Harry! And the authorities were not notified? What kind of school is this?" Emma asked, furious over Harry's treatment.

A box on Steelfist's desk began speaking in Gobbledygook. "We should likely revisit this topic later. Harry and Hermione have just completed their business in Harry's allowance vault and are returning here now. There is one other thing I would like to discuss with you before they return. Please do not give Harry too much of a talking to this summer about spending his gold. His allowance vault alone has close to half a million galleons in it. If you do discuss it with him, provide him with gentle reminders about the value of money versus the value of happiness. While I agree with the two of you that he should learn estate management, he should be allowed to do something he hasn't been allowed to do the last nine and a half years and that is to be a child. If he wants to buy something for one of you or for Hermione, or for anyone else, please let him do so and let him know honestly how much the item means to you, but reinforce each and every time how much he means to you, both in emotional terms and verbalization. He needs to be genuinely loved and," he pointed to the folders outlining their lives from birth to present in excruciating details, "we know you are best suited to bring him back from the abyss and give him the best possibility for a better life. I could give you a list of business reasons Gringott's would want this, but as Guilder Gringott said when he read the report on Harry, the lives of children are precious and should not ever be squandered. We would cheerfully feed Vernon Dursley to the Gringott's dragons."

Emma and Dan both nodded their understanding.

There was a knock at the door. "Enter," Steelfist called out in a normal tone of voice.

Ironclaw preceded Harry, Hermione and Goldfinder into the room and was talking to the two children. "...I am glad you enjoyed the side trip to the dragons. As you can see, they are quite nice to be around as long as we're talking about the non-sentient breeds. Try tossing a ball of ground beef or pork to a Norwegian Ridgeback or one of the other sentient species and you'll want to insure your will is in order first!" Ironclaw exclaimed with a smile.

Hermione looked over at her parents and ran over to give them both a hug. "Oh Mum! Dad! You should have seen it! Ironclaw met us down at Harry's vault and took us to see some guard dragons in training! It was so exciting! And we found books on the different breeds of dragons in Harry's allowance vault!" she exclaimed, holding up a small box, clearly happily excited.

Harry, being more aware of people's moods and the subtle signals people gave off unconsciously due to the abuse he experienced at the hands of the Dursleys and Dudley's school bully friends, saw the signs of tension and stress in both Dan and Emma. He didn't want to mention anything, but it reminded him of something that brought a smile to his face. "Dad? Mum? Ironclaw let me know something while we were looking through the small library in my allowance vault. I apparently own a very nice restaurant in Diagon Alley. Could we eat there tonight? I have a happy surprise for you,"Harry said with a smile, trying to determine if he could detect the reason for their tension.

"That sounds wonderful, Harry! And I love happy surprises!" Emma said with a genuine smile, putting their earlier concerns into the back of her mind.

Harry then turned to Ironclaw. "Ironclaw, you and Steelfist have been accommodating, gracious and honest, which is more than I can say about nearly every witch and wizard I have met so far that I am certain of," he turned and looked at Hermione with a shy smile, "except one witch," at which Hermione looked at him and blushed. "May I be so bold as to consider the two of you my friends?" Harry asked.

"Harry, it would be my honour to call you friend and for you to publicly call me Ironclaw," Ironclaw said, standing and bowing formally to Harry, splaying his fingers and closing his eyes. He stood this way for some seconds.

When Ironclaw stood up again, Harry returned the bow, splaying his fingers and closing his eyes.

Steelfist was somewhat incredulous that an Elector would treat a wizard as an equal. This was historic and he would not believe another's account of it had he himself not witnessed it.

Harry then turned to Steelfist and bowed, splaying his fingers and closing his eyes. He waited a few moments then stood up. Steelfist looked for a moment and swallowed. To fail to give the offering of friendship could be seen as either an act of contempt or an act of fear, yet he did not know how to feel about this wizard that was still such a mystery to him. Regardless, it would be an affront to Ironclaw if he failed to extend the branch of friendship.

Steelfist took a deep breath, bowed, splayed his fingers and closed his eyes. After counting to ten and not feeling a knife at his throat or feeling his field of magic invaded, he straightened and opened his eyes.

"It is an honour to have two friends amongst The People," Harry said.

"Harry, I was given authority from Guilder Gringott himself, and were he in this branch today, he would have done so himself. You are not simply my friend. You are a friend of The People," Ironclaw said.

-oOoOo-


	5. A Night To Remember

-oOoOo-

While Emma and Dan were still concerned about the possibility of Harry having lingering mental issues due to guilt, they nevertheless enjoyed watching the two children shopping. As they were about to enter Flourish and Blotts, Hermione caught sight of Luna Lovegood and her father. "Harry," Hermione called out and directed his attention at the two. Harry nodded, grabbed Hermione's hand and the two of them ran over.

"Luna!" Harry called out.

Luna looked up with a guarded expression on her face. When she saw that it was Harry and Hermione, her face transformed as a huge smile bloomed. "Harry! Hermione!" she called back. The three of them joined in a three-way hug the way only children can. "Are you doing better, Harry?" Luna asked sincerely.

Harry thought of the support and love Emma and Dan gave him every day and he could only smile and nod, "Much!"

"Are you going to Hogwarts this year, Luna?" Hermione asked.

"Yes! I am so looking forward to having friends and learning more magic! Daddy's been teaching me some, but some of the arithmancy and runes can be difficult and Daddy wants me to know how the spells work before he'll let me cast them," Luna explained with a pout.

The three adults had caught up to the children at this point.

"Now Luna, it is important to know how something works..." Xeno was cut off as Luna completed the sentence for him.

"...in order to understand the impact and results fully," Luna sing-songed, "Yes, Daddy, I know. But sometimes I just want to close my eyes and let my magic take me where it will!"

Xeno smiled down at his daughter then looked up at Harry and Hermione. "Good afternoon. I believe you are Lord Potter. I am ostensibly Lord Lovegood, but please call me Xeno. I'm sorry young miss. I have not been properly introduced," he said, then looked down at Luna expectantly.

"I'm sorry, Daddy. This is Hermione," Luna said.

Hermione held out her hand, which Xeno took but neither shook nor kissed.

"A pleasure to meet you, Hermione," Xeno said, then looked up at Dan and Emma. "And these must be your parents. Xenophilias Lovegood," he said.

Dan and Emma introduced themselves to Xeno, while listening to the conversation the children were having.

"I don't have many friends now. In fact, I only have the one but since her brothers aren't very nice to me, I don't even see her very often as her mother won't let her come to my house," Luna was saying, sounding lonely.

"What do you do during the summer, Luna?" Hermione asked, knowing all too well what it was like to be lonely and only having books as friends.

"Not much. I read and sometimes help Daddy at his work," Luna replied.

Hermione looked at Harry with a pleading expression. "Luna, Mr. Lovegood, we're having dinner tonight and would like to invite the two of you along, if you have the time," Harry said cordially.

Luna looked up at her father, excitement clearly expressed in her eyes and the clenched hands and tense arms. Since Maia's death, Xeno had buried himself in his work, not truly knowing how to raise his daughter and hoping, more times than not, that he wasn't doing her harm.

"Turtle Dove, I have that meeting this evening," Xeno said apologetically, dying a little inside as the spark of excitement went out on Luna's face, wishing there was some way she could go.

"Mr. Lovegood, we have a guest bedroom and Luna could eat dinner with us and watch a movie with us after dinner and stay at our house. We could meet you here tomorrow to bring her back to you," Emma said, seeing how disappointed the two girls were at them not being able to spend some time together.

Seeing the spark relight on Luna's face, Xeno felt his heart beat again. "If it would be no imposition..."

"Watching laughing children enjoy one another's company is hardly an imposition, Mr. Lovegood," Dan said, smiling at Harry and Hermione hugging Luna once again, all three of them clearly happy to have the opportunity to spend some time getting to know one another.

"Then it is settled, Tulip, you can stay tonight and I will pick you up in the alley some time tomorrow," Xeno said with a smile, experiencing a feeling he had not experienced in some time; being truly happy for his daughter.

Luna squealed, turned around and hugged Xeno. "Oh! Thank you! Daddy! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she said then buried her head into his stomach.

"Just be well-behaved, as I know you will be," Xeno said. He looked up at Dan and Emma. "I will be in the office of The Quibbler, my newspaper, from ten tomorrow morning until well into the evening. It's just on the left past Ollivander's," he explained.

"We will take good care of her and bring her back sometime after lunch tomorrow," Emma said.

"Excellent!" Xeno said then looked at Luna. "I must be off, Sweet Plum. I will see you tomorrow"

"Bye Daddy! Love you! See you tomorrow!" Luna said, blowing her father a kiss.

Xeno acted as if it hit him on the cheek and held his hand to his cheek, smiled, waved and walked away, heading towards the Leaky Cauldron.

Harry and Hermione each took one of Luna's hands and the three of them walked in front of Dan and Emma as they continued walking through the alley. Dan and Emma looked at one another but didn't say anything. Neither of them had seen the look Hermione had given Harry so believed this new addition to their evening had been Harry's idea.

-oOoOo-

Harry, Hermione and Luna entered the restaurant with Emma and Dan following behind them, watching the interactions of the three children. The two adults did not miss the dynamic of the children as they constantly switched who the centre of attention was, although Harry and Hermione seemed to want Luna between them most of the time, likely due to her lack of friends.

The five of them walked up to the maître d'. The man looked at Dan and Emma in horror. _Muggles? Here? This will not do!_ "I am afraid we are closed this evening in preparation of the owner having a family dinner here tonight. You will need to leave," he said with a disdainful tone.

He looked down at Harry when Harry spoke. "Have you worked here long?" Harry asked with a chill to his voice.

"I do not see how that question is relevant. You really must leave now. Go," the maître d' said, making a shooing motion with his hands towards them.

"I was actually wondering if you had worked here long enough to know my father, Lord James Potter," Harry asked in a deceptively mild tone, just as another man in formal robes came out of the kitchen door and walked directly up to Harry.

The maître d's eyes grew large as the General Manager greeted Harry. "Lord Potter! It is a great privilege to meet you, Sir. You look just like your father and you have your mother's eyes," he said then took in the rest of the group. "I am Simon Cowellick, the General Manager of The Pampered Lamb and on behalf of all of the staff, I bid you welcome. I see you brought guests this evening as well?" the manager asked.

Harry reached out and shook hands with the manager. "These are my family, Mister Cowellick. These are my guardians, Doctor Daniel and Doctor Emma Granger," Harry said, indicating Dan and Emma.

Simon shook Dan's hand and kissed Emma's hand. "A pleasure to meet you both," he said.

"This is their daughter and my best friend, Miss Hermione Granger," Harry said, indicating Hermione.

Simon took her hand but did not kiss it, "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Granger." Hermione blushed.

"And this is Lord Lovegood's daughter, and a good friend of Miss Granger and mine, Miss Luna Lovegood," Harry said, indicating Luna.

Luna blushed both at Harry's introduction as well as at Simon's greeting. "Miss Lovegood, you humble us by your presence this evening," he said, also taking her hand but not kissing it.

Simon stood to his full height and his eyes constantly played over each member of the group. "I would like to welcome all of you to the finest restaurant in Magical Europe, The Pampered Lamb. Tonight's menu features some of Lord Potter's mother's favourites from our selection of over three hundred culinary delights our chef's have assembled from across the world. I would request that if you desire something you do not see on the menu that you do not hesitate to ask as we wish to make tonight enjoyable, memorable and spectacular. Before I seat you at your parents' favourite table, Lord Potter, did you or your family have any questions?" Simon asked.

"Mr Cowellick, why did you close the restaurant today just for me?" Harry asked.

"Please, Lord Potter, call me Simon. To answer your question, it was my impression from your account manager at Gringott's that you wanted a quiet dinner this evening. We will reopen to the public for dinner and supper later this evening, but I thought you might want some privacy," Simon said, somewhat worried.

"Thank you, Simon. I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but if the tables have silencing charms on them, I would invite you to open the restaurant once we're seated," Harry said with a smile.

Simon nodded then led the group to a table in the far corner of the restaurant which was both well-lit and had a view of every other table. A menu was then handed to each member of the party. Dan and Emma's menus also had wine pairing recommendations. None of the menus had prices.

Luna was the first to speak. "Harry? You OWN The Pampered Lamb?" she exclaimed. Harry nodded. "Do you realise the manager wasn't kidding? The is truly the première and most expensive restaurant in all of Europe. They literally have the best food, from what I understand, but have never been here before," she said a little embarrassed, "Daddy doesn't take me out to dinner very often."

"Don't worry, Luna. We are all here to enjoy ourselves and one another's company," Hermione said with a smile, looking at Luna then at Harry, who looked back at her with a smile and nodded.

Everyone looked at their menu and decided on their dinners, although when their waiter took Hermione's order, he noticed she gave it with a bit of a frown. "Did you not see something you wanted on the menu this evening, young miss?" the waiter asked.

"Oh, I am fine with my selection," she said, then looked at the waiter with an embarrassed smile, "I just really like curry and I was hoping to find something with curry in it since this is the home of the best food in Europe."

Harry looked up and noticed there were several other tables being seated for dinner, and that Luna, Hermione and him were the only children.

The waiter looked at Hermione, then looked at the kitchen door, then looked back at Hermione. "I will be right back, Miss. I would like one of our chefs to come speak with you, if you don't mind."

Hermione blushed but nodded.

The waiter nodded back with a conspiratorial smile on his face and disappeared into the kitchen. Moments later, he reappeared with a swarthy-skinned woman dressed in immaculately clean white robes.

"Miss, I would like you to meet Master Chef Nirmayi Singh, who would very much like to make your experience here tonight memorable," the waiter said.

The chef nodded her head to Hermione. "I understand you have an interest in the subtle art of culinary spices, Miss. Do you mind if I ask you some questions regarding your previous experiences delving into the complexities of spices?" the chef asked.

Hermione took on an expression Harry had frequently seen: the dedicated, researching student. Hermione nodded and the other four were impressed by the chef's demeanour and knowledge. She asked Hermione a dozen questions about the past curries she had eaten, only to discover she had only ever had the milder, sweet curries.

"If you do not have any objections, Miss, I would like to prepare you a meal consisting of a variety of curries that will complement one another across the courses and will provide you a wider experience of flavours, intensities and methods which I believe you will enjoy," the chef said.

Harry caught the chef's attention. "Excuse me, Miss. Could I switch my order to have whatever it is you are making for Miss Granger? It sounds wonderful!" Harry said.

"Lord Potter, I would be genuinely honoured to prepare your meal as well," the chef said somewhat in surprise.

"It sounds great to me, too!" Luna said. She then looked at the waiter. "Can I switch, too?" she asked.

Dan and Emma looked at one another and smiled then looked at the waiter and the chef. "I believe all of us would like to depart on this culinary adventure," Dan said, looking hopeful at the chef.

"You all do me a great honour," the chef said. "I will do my best to provide you with the best eleven courses you will ever taste," she promised, then bowed to the table and left to begin preparing their meals.

The waiter nodded to Harry then departed.

"So, Harry, you said you had a happy surprise for us?" Emma prompted.

Harry blushed and nodded, looking down at his napkin he was twisting in his hands. "It is something Bonnie told me I could tell you," Harry said.

"Bonnie as in Bonnie from St. Mungo's?" Emma asked.

Harry nodded again before looking up at Emma. "It's a really huge and happy surprise," Harry said.

"What is it, Son?" Dan asked, looking at Harry. While Dan had seen Harry being happy in the past, whatever the surprise was clearly made him happier than Dan had ever seen the boy before but it also embarrassed him for some reason.

"I really hope this is the happy news I want it to be," Harry said, it seemed mostly to himself then he looked up into Emma's face, leaned across Hermione and whispered into Emma's ear, "You're pregnant with magical twins. A boy and a girl."

Because the whisper happened right in front of Hermione's face, she wondered why she could not hear it as well.

Emma sat up and stared in shock at Harry. _He isn't just making this up, is he?_

When he didn't get the reaction he was expecting, he looked down at the table again with a sad expression.

"Harry?" Emma asked him, "Bonnie told you to tell me this? Why would she want you to tell me this instead of telling me this herself?"

"Because she told me and I asked her if I could tell you because I thought you would be really happy," he said dejectedly. "She found out because when she was trying to run one of her tests, it kept giving her strange results when you were holding me so she tested you and found out you were pregnant. I'm sorry it isn't good news for you," Harry said, on the verge of tears.

Dan gulped. _Emma is pregnant?_

"Harry, I was told by my doctor that because of all the issues I had during my pregnancy with Hermione that I wouldn't be able to have any more children," Emma said, then looked at Harry closely. "Harry, I am not suggesting this, but you aren't making this up, are you?"

Harry shook his head. "I could feel the little girl's magic at the will reading," he said.

"Mum, the spell is simple," Hermione said and pulled out her wand and cast, "Prolifica Libere" and Emma's abdomen briefly glowed pink and then blue.

Luna expressed her excitement, "Wow! A boy and a girl! Twins are rare enough, but a boy and a girl who are both magical in the same birthing is truly rare! Congratulations!"

Emma had watched Hermione cast the spell and saw the two flashes of colour. Luna's excitement was apparently catching. "Is that what that means?" Emma squealed in excitement and happiness. _This certainly explains the nausea I have been having in the morning!_ she thought.

Hermione squealed as well and was bouncing in her seat, "Yes! Mum! I am going to have a brother and a sister!" Hermione exclaimed excitedly.

Harry tentatively looked up at Emma. "Does this mean you're not upset?"

"Oh! Harry! I am so sorry I doubted you!" Emma exclaimed and reached across Hermione to give Harry a huge hug.

"Pregnant?" Dan asked, his mind not quite accepting the news yet.

Emma released Harry, turned and hugged Dan. "Twins!" she squealed excitedly.

Hermione looked over at her parents, who were lost in each others eyes. She then turned to look at Harry, who had Luna's head resting on his shoulder and his arm wrapped around her. Hermione decided that looked comfortable and grabbed Harry's other arm, wrapped it around her and leaned her head on his other shoulder. Harry looked down at her and smiled as well.

-oOoOo-

Dinner had been, as promised by Chef Singh, a masterful journey of epicurean delight with an emphasis on spices, curries and the differences and similarities of the cuisine of the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Master Chef Singh described each of the dishes, where they were from, how they were cooked, what spices were used, where the spices were produced, the parts of the plant the spices were made from, and any unusual ingredients in each of the dishes. All five of them were enraptured by Singh's ability in both creating the gastronomical tour as well as making their mouths water for more even when their stomachs were already nearly full.

"I understand there is a blessed event you are celebrating this evening," Chef Singh said, looking at Emma, "and I would like to offer you a dessert inspired by the happy occasion."

Emma was pleasantly surprised and nodded.

"The primary ingredients of the dessert are bananas ripened to the point the skins are almost completely black, apricots, red, over-ripened mangoes and dates. The bananas and mangoes are prepared, lightly blended then frozen. The dates are turned into a paste. The apricots are double-blanched to first remove the skins, then to remove the fruit from the pit. The fruit is then thinly sliced. It is then table flambéed in cognac. I do hope you enjoy it," Singh said.

The presentation had the eyes of all the diners watching as they had all watched the presentations of the curries. For once, Harry noticed he was not the centre of the attention of all the strangers in the room. Master Chef Singh performed the last few steps of preparation of the dessert at the table, doused the concoction with the cognac and used a candle to light the cognac ablaze, which crisped the date paste, holding in the now liquefied banana/mango blend and sweated the apricot slices slightly.

"Lord Potter, I do hope you and your family have enjoyed tonight's meal and I would be honoured to provide your next world tour of food," Master Chef Singh said before leaving them to eat their dessert.

The girls and Dan savoured every bite. Harry took, by far, the longest to eat his dessert, letting each ingredient and combination thereof mix in his mouth as he taught himself how the different combinations could taste. He was staring off into space tasting the sensations of the final mixture of all five ingredients together when he felt Luna and Hermione simultaneously kiss him on his cheeks, pulling him out of his thought process. "What did I do to deserve that?" he asked with a happy smile on his face.

"You are kind, generous, sweet and a gentleman, Harry," Luna said and leaned her head once more on his shoulder.

"You also have the best surprises!" Hermione exclaimed and leaned her head once more on his shoulder.

"Thank you for both the wonderful surprise and the amazing dinner, Harry," Emma said, not having let go of Dan's hand since they discovered she really was pregnant.

"It was amazing, Harry," Dan said, not sure himself if he was talking about dinner, the news, or both.

-oOoOo-

The five of them stepped from the Knight's Bus and walked to the curb, just enjoying the evening, the company, the afterglow of dinner, the elation of Emma's pregnancy and each had other thoughts that brought about a warm, lasting glow of happiness.

They entered the house and Emma headed immediately upstairs. Dan looked longingly after her but had agreed to take care of the children tonight first.

"Okay, you three," he said happily, "tonight the rules are going to be relaxed a little bit. I am going to pull out the sofa. You three get upstairs, and get into your night clothes then come right back down. You can stay up until eleven and you can sleep down here on the sofa bed. Now off with you!" Dan exclaimed happily, watching the three youngsters run up the stairs, Harry disappearing into his room and closing the door for some privacy to change and Luna and Hermione running into Hermione's room and closing the door to change.

When Hermione's door closed, Luna thought there was going to be a problem. "Hermione, I know we're not the same size, but may I borrow a night shirt?" Luna asked, blushing slightly.

"Of course, Luna. I knew we didn't give you a chance to pack or anything," Hermione said, taking charge of the younger girl. Hermione gave Luna a night shirt with a rainbow coloured unicorn with the words "Friendship Magic" underneath it on the front. "Here, Luna. And you can keep this to remind you that Harry and I will always be your friends," Hermione said.

Luna looked in awe at the shirt then at Hermione and threw herself into a hug with her, a tear running down her cheek. "Oh Hermione! You're the best friend a girl could have!" Luna said.

Hermione hugged Luna back and cuddled her for a minute. She then held her at arm's length. "We should get changed and get back downstairs or Daddy will wonder what happened to us," Hermione said with a smile.

Luna began changing as Hermione took out another night shirt which was plain white and went to just below her knees. The two girls finished changing, put on slippers and walked downstairs slowly to listen in on the quiet conversation Dan was having with Harry.

"...a really nice surprise, Harry and a nice dinner. I know that Mum and I enjoyed it and am pretty certain the girls enjoyed it, too. I think Hermione will be talking about the curry for the next several months," Dan said, laughing at his memory of Hermione's antics when the chef had brought out the curry dishes.

"Thanks, Dad. I am really glad you and Mum enjoyed dinner. Thank you again for allowing Luna to come along. I know it means a lot to Hermione and it means a lot to me to not only have friends but to be allowed to invite them along with us," Harry said shyly.

Hermione looked at Luna and raised her finger to her lips to keep the younger girl from talking or whispering.

"Just remember to give me a chance to talk with Mister Lovegood first about her coming with us on holiday before you ask her. I want to make certain it is acceptable to her father before getting her hopes up too much," Dan said with a fatherly hand on Harry's shoulder.

"I agree that would be best. I wouldn't want to hurt her feelings. But if he does say yes, I can floo over to Steelfist and get her passport taken care of in just a few minutes like ours were done," Harry said.

"Good lad, Harry. I am going to go upstairs and check on the girls. Now remember, you all can sleep down here tonight like a slumber party, but the telly and the lights must be off no later than half twelve," Dan said, then gave Harry a hug goodnight.

Hermione tapped Luna and gestured for her to follow Hermione upstairs. "Once we're at the top of the stairs, we can walk down again," Hermione whispered. Luna just nodded.

The two girls got to the top of the stairs as Dan began climbing them, "I'm coming up, girls. Are you ready for bed yet?" Dan said loudly as he came up the stairs.

"We're on our way down, Daddy!" Hermione said loudly, holding Luna's hand as the two began their trek downstairs.

Dan hadn't been specific, and wasn't certain night shirts were enough for a sleep over with a boy present, but decided Harry was a gentleman and let it go. "As I told Harry, the rules have been relaxed a little bit tonight, Kitten. Lights and telly off at half midnight and you three get settled in to sleep," Dan said, knelt down and kissed and hugged Hermione goodnight.

Luna decided, there and then, that she really wished she had an aunt and uncle like Hermione's parents and she was adopting them as such. She gave Dan a hug, "Thank you, Uncle Dan! I really enjoyed myself today!" Luna kissed Dan on the cheek before letting him go.

"We enjoyed your company as well, Luna, and we hope this is the first of many happy days and sleep overs you have with Harry and Hermione," Dan said.

The two girls continued down the stairs while Dan headed into the bedroom to spend some quality, intimate time with Emma.

-oOoOo-

Harry had enjoyed watching Star Wars, The Wizard of Oz and The Jungle Book with Hermione and Luna. He wasn't sure if it was the magic of the movies, Luna's excitement at the "wizarding picture with sound" or Hermione singing along and Luna trying as well. Perhaps it was just how happy both girls were and how their happy magic was intermingling with his own.

Now that the telly and the lights were off, Hermione and Luna were having a whispered conversation over his chest, as they were both resting their heads on him. Although she was talking in a whisper, both Harry and Hermione noticed Luna was over the moon with being with them, being their friend and being treated kindly and with affection.

"I've never sung along with anyone else before and the songs are so fun to sing and being snuggled in with you and Harry while watching the movies was so nice and does Luke use magic and how do muggle moving pictures work and when I got scared they were going to get crushed it was so nice to get hugged and..." Luna had run on like this for fifteen minutes without stopping until she finally ran out of steam, "...and I want to see what its like to kiss," and promptly gave Hermione a quick, chaste kiss on the lips.

Hermione had almost been lulled into sleep by Luna's nearly non-stop, seemingly single-breathed monologue that the kiss was the logical conclusion and Luna's entire purpose in talking so long. Hermione, however, suddenly went wide-eyed, but didn't know how to respond.

"That was nice. I'd like to do that again," Luna said dreamily, looking at Harry.

"Luna, you should at least ask Harry's permission first," Hermione said, still somewhat shocked.

"Can I practice my kiss, Harry?" Luna stage whispered to Harry.

"Um...I've never kissed before, but sure," Harry responded rather cautiously.

Luna leaned over and kissed Hermione again, lingering a little this time, noting Hermione wasn't pulling back or struggling.

"Luna! I said you had to ask permission first!" Hermione whispered in a huff. _That was actually quite nice,"_ Hermione thought. _Harry is going to need lessons,_ she thought with a calculating smile on her lips.

"I did ask Harry's permission, just like you told me to do," Luna challenged with a smile of her own.

"You have to ask Harry if you want to kiss Harry," Hermione said in a normal tone of voice.

"Oh! Now I understand!" Luna exclaimed and once more, leaned across Harry and stole a quick kiss from Hermione. "I need to ask permission to kiss Harry but I don't need to ask permission to kiss you. That makes so much sense!" Luna exclaimed.

Harry couldn't help but quietly laugh. Hermione looked at him in a huff then looked at Luna. "Luna, why don't we both go and use the loo before we go to sleep for the night," Hermione said, getting out from beneath the covers.

"That's a great idea! We'll be back in a few minutes, Harry," Luna said, nearly leaping out of bed, taking Hermione's hand and practically dragging the older girl up the stairs into Hermione's room.

Harry shook his head, got out of bed and went into the downstairs loo to brush his teeth before bedtime.

When he got back, the girls had still not gotten downstairs. He laid back down on the sofa bed and put his hands behind his head. _How did I get so lucky? First I get the best best friend, then I get a new family and now I am getting to have a sleep over with my two best friends and they're both girls!_ Harry thought, never having had the "girls are yucky" stage of his life.

-oOoOo-

"But if I want to get good at kissing, I need to practice," Luna said, unsuccessful in stealing another kiss from Hermione.

Hermione shook her head and smiled, "Luna, how about this. Let me talk to Mum about kissing practice and see what she says. I want to be a good kisser, too," she said, a slight blush to her cheeks.

"For Harry?" Luna asked

Hermione's blush grew deeper and she nodded.

"Then I'll help you be the best kisser you can be! I want to be a good kisser for whomever I am with as well!" Luna exclaimed.

Hermione looked at the wall of her bedroom and held her finger up to her lips. "Luna, we have to be quiet. Mum and Daddy are on the other side of that wall," she said.

Hermione yipped at the sound of her father's voice. "Actually, Kitten, Mum asked me to tell you that she thinks you might still be a little too young for kissing practice but says if you're feeling old enough for kissing, she'll help you," Dan said softly, then looked at Luna, "and apparently that includes you as well, Luna," causing Luna to run over and give Dan a hug. Dan was fairly certain there was no blood available for Hermione's legs to work based on the pretty pink hue her face had.

"Myself, I think you're both too young by almost three years," Dan held up his hands as he saw Hermione about to protest, "however, I trust Mum and I trust you, Kitten. I am learning to trust Harry. Grant you, he saved your life and for that I shall never, ever be able to repay him, but, given some time, I am sure I will trust Harry as much as I trust you, Luna. Kitten." Dan heard the loo downstairs flush and the water at the sink turn on. "I am going to go back to bed. You two run downstairs. You three can sleep in as your Mum and I have to work tomorrow afternoon only and we're going to have a bit of a lay in ourselves," he said quietly, then kissed Luna on the top of the head and then kissed Hermione on the cheek and quietly walked back to the door. "Oh and Kitten," Dan said, waiting for Hermione to look at him, "no kissing lessons for Harry without talking to Mum first," he said and waited.

Hermione nodded with a blush still on her cheeks.

"Sweet dreams, you two," Dan said then entered and closed the door of the master bedroom.

"Let's use the loo and get back downstairs," Hermione said, somewhat dejectedly.

"He said you couldn't give Harry lessons. He didn't say you couldn't give him a goodnight kiss," Luna whispered.

Hermione looked up at Luna and smiled. Without saying another word, the two girls took turns in the loo, brushed their teeth and went back downstairs.

-oOoOo-

Harry looked up as he heard the girls slowly walking down the stairs. He smiled when he saw they, too, were smiling. They traded sides from when they had watched the movies and both girls lay their heads on his chest again after each kissing him on the cheek.

"Sleep well, Harry. Sleep well, Luna," Hermione said tiredly.

"Sleep well, Harry. Sleep well, Hermione," Luna said.

Harry wrapped one arm around each of the girls. "Sleep sweet, Hermione. Sleep sweet, Luna," Harry said and then closed his eyes and magically hugged both girls briefly.

Both girls opened their eyes widely in surprise then closed them again, emitting contented sighs. Luna fell asleep with a smile. Hermione fell asleep with one hand on Luna's cheek and the other wrapped under Harry.

In the morning, when Dan came down to start breakfast, he found them in the same state. He quietly went back upstairs and gently roused Emma so she could see the three angels asleep as well.

Emma made sure to take plenty of pictures.

-oOoOo-


	6. Waking to Breakfast

-oOoOo-

Harry awoke first, his heightened sense of awareness activating his fight-or-flight response. His eyes were still closed. He slowed his breathing. He could hear whimpering. There were two weights on his chest and a warmth to either side of him, the one on his left was moving slightly. He could never remember having awoken like this before and was awaiting the slapping, kicking or punching that usually followed incoherent yelling. He cracked one eye open and looked down on his chest.

Luna awoke, but kept her eyes closed and had a happy smile on her face. _I am curled up with two of the nicest people I have ever met. Harry makes such a nice pillow. I could stay like this all day long!_ she thought. Then she realized why she had woken. _Hermione!_ Luna thought. She opened her eyes but didn't move. She looked up and saw Harry already had his eyes open and was also looking at Hermione with some concern.

-oOoOo-

Hermione was in the bathroom and, while there was no troll in it, the door was locked and she couldn't get out. She moved to the corner furthest from the door and hid beneath the line of sinks. Suddenly a troll burst through the door. She whimpered. _If I am quiet, it won't see me and will just go away, _she thought_. _The troll stood to its full height and looked directly at her. Its eyes turned red and it waved its hand at the doorway, filling it again with an unbroken, locked door. It smiled at her and walked over to the stalls and slammed its club down once. Twice. Three times. On the fourth time, it was apparently bored with shattering one toilet at a time and swung its club sideways to take out the remaining stalls. "I am coming for you, Little Girl," it said in a deep, menacing sing-song voice, filling the air with the stench of burning flesh. It walked to the opposite end of the row of sinks and began striking them one at a time. There was suddenly a banging on the door and she could faintly hear Harry's voice on the other side shouting her name. The troll looked at the door and then back at her. "He won't get here before I eat you. I'll start at your feet so he can experience your screams as I consume you," it said, again filling the air with the smell of burned meat. She began crying. She didn't have her wand. The door was locked and the troll was getting closer. At the sound of an explosion, she looked up. The troll had turned around and was looking at what used to be the doorway. The door was missing entirely. The stone archway where the door had stood was missing as well as much of the wall it used to be a part of. In its place stood a very determined, very angry Harry. He didn't say anything. He didn't move his wand. The troll looked at him in fear, turned from him and tried to run away, but out of the hole in the wall came a petrol lorry that ran the troll over, splattering him all over the walls. She then heard him call her name, "Hermione?" She didn't know why, but she knew if she didn't scream out his name, he would never find her. "HARRY!"

-oOoOo-

"HARRY!" Hermione screamed as she desperately grabbed Harry around the neck and held onto him for dear life. Harry wrapped his arms around her and Luna also wrapped herself around Hermione.

Dan and Emma came running in from the kitchen to see Hermione sobbing uncontrollably and being held by Harry and Luna. All that could be made out from Hermione's sobs was, "Bathroom... troll... saved me... " as she clung to Harry, intent on never letting him go. They both wanted to run to her and make it better, but Emma held Dan back so they could watch the dynamics of their children.

Harry had one hand on the back of her head and one hand wrapped around her waist and was talking to her. "Shhhhhh. 'Mione. I'm right here. The troll is dead. Everything is fine. Come back to me, 'Mione. Shhhhhh. You're safe now. I need my best friend to come back, 'Mione. Come back to me."

Luna had her arms wrapped all the way around Hermione with her hands on Harry's back, simply providing warmth and a presence. Then she piped up, "Harry! Give her a hug like last night!"

"Luna, never doubt you are a smart, caring person," Harry said, smiling at her. "Are you ready for the hug, Luna? I don't think I can separate the two of you out."

Luna nodded.

Harry reached out and felt the girls' magics intermingling with his and wanted to try to gradually hug them instead of overwhelming them. He saw the hose spigot in his mind again and gently turned it just enough to see it move. Hermione's sobbing quieted to a soft crying. Luna cooed softly and nuzzled into Hermione's hair.

Harry turned it just a bit more and waited again as Hermione stopped crying and her grip around his neck softened. Luna sighed happily. Harry turned it one more notch and Hermione began nuzzling into his neck and Luna got an ear-to-ear smile on her face.

Emma and Dan looked at one another then looked at the three children. "I think we need to give them a light version of the talk, Honey Bear," Emma whispered to Dan. "With Hermione physically developing already and Harry having this...this...hugging power, I want to make sure they don't do anything they shouldn't."

"I agree, Cuddle Cat. If I am completely honest, I am just glad this hugging power isn't something Hermione has read about and that Harry is the one with it. Can you imagine if that Malfoy boy had this type of magic?"

The two of them walked over and sat down on the sofa bed. Harry looked over at them, fear in his expression at how they might react to him holding Hermione so closely.

Dan put his hand gently on the back of Harry's head and smiled. "Thank you for taking care of her, Son. You are truly a son to be proud of," Dan said, a lone tear running down his cheek. He then looked at Hermione who was now completely relaxed and was rubbing her cheek against Harry's cheek. Dan's smile grew a little bigger.

Emma was smiling as well, rubbing gentle circles in Luna's back. "Your magic hugging must be pretty nice, Harry. You should probably let it go gently, so it isn't a sudden shock to them, if you can," Emma said quietly.

Harry smiled and blushed at Emma and nodded. He turned it down a notch, counted to thirty, turned it down another notch, counted to thirty again then released it entirely.

Luna opened her eyes, pulled her head back and looked at Harry. "Harry, if you can somehow teach me how to do that, I would love to repay you someday for being such a wonderful person. Your hugs are amazing!" She sat up and both she and Emma began rubbing Hermione's back to provide her with physical reassurance of her safety.

Hermione had also opened her eyes, saw her parents and hid her face behind Harry.

"Are you doing better, Kitten?" Dan asked.

When she didn't answer, Emma took over the discussion. "Honey, we're not upset with you. We both understand as much as we can about the troll," she said. When Hermione still didn't respond, Emma looked at Harry and winked then continued on, "And isn't it a good thing Harry was here to take care of you when you woke up frightened from the nightmare?"

That actually got Hermione to sit up. She looked at Emma and Dan then looked at Harry. "He's the best!" she exclaimed with a smile, "and he gives the best hugs!"

"Yes! He does!" Luna exclaimed as well.

"Are you doing better, Kitten?" Dan asked again, concern still evident on his face.

Hermione nodded and wiped her eyes, giving Luna, Emma and Dan each a hug. Harry watched as she did this with a feeling of immense peace. With a slight blush coming to her cheeks, Hermione turned to Harry to give him a hug as well and saw the relaxed expression on his face. "Harry?" she asked.

Harry blinked his eyes a couple of times and looked at Hermione. "Yes, 'Mione?" he asked, somewhat bewildered.

Realising she was still only wearing a night shirt and knickers, Hermione became a bit self-conscious. "Luna and I are going to go upstairs and get changed and then we'll be right back down. Is that okay?" she asked.

Harry smiled at her. "I will see you two when you come back down," he said. She blushed a bit more and nodded. Luna bounced off the bed and took Hermione's hand, pulling her to the edge. The two of them dashed upstairs to change. Harry watched the two girls until they were out of sight. He heard Hermione's bedroom door close then looked down and saw Emma and Dan watching him. He swallowed hard and was about to apologise when Dan spoke up.

"I meant what I said, Harry. You are truly a son to be proud of. My first surgery appointment isn't until two. Since we don't have anything else to do this morning, how about the five of us go into London to do some shopping?" Dan asked, a smile on his face.

"Really?" Harry asked, his voice cracking mid-word.

"Yes, really. We can go to Harrod's, letting Mum and the girls run off to do their shopping and you and I can take care of your shopping needs," Dan explained, squeezing Harry's shoulder. "Go on upstairs and get dressed and we can leave right after breakfast." Dan watched as Harry's fear bled off and he gave both Dan and Emma hugs before running upstairs himself to get ready for the day.

"Dan, how could he be raised by such atrocious people yet come to be such a wonderful boy?" Emma asked, a mixture of emotions in her voice.

I don't know, Cuddle Cat, but I somehow think, two years from now, I am not going to get to perform the 'scary father of girl child' act on Hermione's fiancé. I guess I am just going to have to practice until our new little ones are ready to date," Dan said with a thoughtful smile.

Emma looked at Dan as if he had grown five heads. "Don't you mean five years, Honey Bear?" she asked.

"If those two are still as close, if not closer, in two years as they are today, do you really think she'd pick anyone else when the time came?" Dan asked with a raised eyebrow.

She smiled and shook her head then looked at him again. "Why are you so calm about this, Honey? She's your almost thirteen-year-old daughter and you sound happy that you're already marrying her off," Emma said.

"Yes, and I have five more years to get to know someone who is already turning out to be a better person than I was at the same age," Dan said, getting a far away look. He then looked at Emma again and his smile brightened. "And then I met you and my life only gets better every day. Shall we get breakfast preparation finished so we have time to do a pre-Talk Talk today?" he said, standing up from the sofa bed and, taking her hand, helped her to stand as well. "And you're eating for three now. I want you to set up some appointments with Bonnie at St. Mungo's and if they haven't heard of prenatal care there, we'll get her all the books and have her study them," he said, looking at Emma, trying to hide his still-too-fresh amazement, _I am going to have two new lives to care for and nurture. I hope I am up to the task._ The two of them finished making breakfast and served it up to three very excited children.

-oOoOo-


	7. A Day At Harrod's

-o-A/N-o-  
>Someone sent me a private message concerning the awareness Dan and Emma have regarding the children's emotions and moods. They are not magical, they are not reading minds. If you know of the work Dr. Paul Ekman has done for several decades improving the science of psychological muscular reactions, you'll understand what they're doing.<br>-o-A/N-o-

-oOoOo-

"Dad?"

"Yes, Harry?" Dan responded, looking down at Harry.

"You and Mum aren't upset with me, are you?" Harry asked, looking up at Dan.

The two of them had been shopping for clothes for Harry and Dan had to periodically remind Harry that he was important, loved and an incredibly special person. At Harry's question, Dan stopped and looked at the boy. _What vibe am I putting off that would make him think I was upset with him? No other way to find out, really..._ Dan thought. Harry noticed Dan had stopped walking and was staring at him, a neutral expression on his face.

"Harry, I don't understand the reasons you think Mum or I would be upset with you. Can you tell me why you think we would be upset?" Dan asked, motioning for Harry to sit down next to him on one of the benches in The Men's Shoe Salon on the lower ground floor.

Harry sat down next to Dan and looked at the floor. "Well...," he paused, "for-holding-Hermione-so-tightly," he blurted out as one word, blushing profusely.

Dan took a moment to process what Harry said, and although he understood it, he wanted to make sure Harry would continue to come to him with his problems. "Harry, would you say that a bit slower. I believe there were some vowels in there somewhere but I may have missed a few," Dan said, trying to keep the smile off his face.

"I thought you and Mum would be upset with me for holding Hermione so tightly this morning," Harry said, not wanting to risk looking up at Dan and seeing the non-existent anger.

"Harry, please look at me," Dan said and waited until Harry made sustained eye contact with him. "Hermione was having a nightmare. About a troll. In a bathroom. While I have loads of experience with comforting children who are coming to the dentist, I have very little experience with trolls in bathrooms," Dan said quietly enough so that only Harry could hear him. Harry nodded.

"So of all us who were in the house this morning, there are exactly two people who have experience with that sort of thing. You are one of them and Hermione is the other," Dan explained. "I know that if your parents were alive today, they would be so incredibly proud of you for comforting Hermione this morning. I know Mum and I are immensely proud of you. Not only for the person you have become in spite of all of the strife fate has put before you, but because you do not flaunt your fame, wealth or abilities. I was happy you were there this morning for Hermione. Mum was happy you were there this morning for Hermione," Dan stopped as a tear was running down Harry's cheek.

"Son, can you tell me why you're so upset?" Dan asked, concerned Harry thought he was not telling the truth.

"I don't remember anyone ever being proud of anything about me," Harry said, another tear running down his cheek.

Dan gathered him into a hug. "Well," he said jovially, "you'd best get used to it because Mum and I are very proud of you and I know Hermione is, as well."

Dan held on to Harry for a few minutes and gave him some time to compose himself. "Now, how about we replace those trainers with something more elegant?" Dan said, waving the attendant over.

-oOoOo-

Luna had never seen a store so huge before. "It's bigger than all of Diagon and Knockturn Alley!" Luna exclaimed.

Emma was smiling as she walked behind the two girls holding hands. When they got off the escalator at the fourth floor, Luna practically had to be dragged away to prevent her from being walked into by the people behind them. Never had she seen so many pretty clothes.

"Breathe, Luna, breathe," Hermione whispered softly, fearing the younger girl was going to pass out. Luna demeanour suddenly changed to being on the verge of tears. "What's wrong, Luna?" Hermione asked.

Luna just shook her head, trying her hardest not to cry.

"Luna, Honey? What's wrong, Dear?" Emma asked, kneeling down and putting her hand on Luna's chin to pull her eyes up to Emma's.

"Da...Da...Daddy can't bring me back here to get anything," she said as two fat tears ran down her face.

Although she thought Luna was being a bit silly, Hermione knew better than to say such a thing. She kissed Luna on the cheek and whispered into her ear, "Luna, Harry is buying you clothes today and you shouldn't argue about it because it would upset him. And you don't want to upset Harry, do you?" Hermione asked, loud enough for Emma to hear as well.

Luna looked up in surprise at Hermione. Although no one had ever treated her as nice as Harry, Hermione and their parents, Luna was still afraid it would all be some cruel prank to build up her trust and then yank it out from under her feet. "Really?" Luna asked, still clearly upset.

"Yes, Luna. Harry would be very upset if you didn't let him buy you some nice things," Emma said, wondering how Hermione would have Harry pay for anything in the store.

Luna's smile returned full force and she hugged Emma and Hermione and kissed each of them on the cheek. "Harry is such a sweet person," she said. "Hermione, do you think you could help me think of a way to thank him?" Luna asked.

Emma, however, was the one who answered, "We'll think of something, Luna," and raised an eyebrow at Hermione.

Hermione helped Luna pick out six complete outfits and the three of them went off to the fitting rooms. When Luna went in to try on her first outfit, Emma looked at Hermione. "Honey, would you care to explain how Harry is going to pay for Luna's clothing?"

"Promise me you won't be upset, Mum?" Hermione asked.

"That all depends, Hermione. What is going on?" Emma asked.

"Mum, did you open your envelope from Gringott's that Steelfist gave you?" Hermione asked, slightly cringing.

"No, Dear. I haven't yet," Emma said, arching an eyebrow.

"Do you have it with you, Mum?" Hermione asked, a pink tinge appearing on her face.

Emma answered by way of opening her bag and removing the large, jet black envelope with the gold G on it and undid the clasp. She looked in the envelope and saw her Gringott's passport and a long, red envelope within. She gave Hermione a "what is this?" look and removed the red envelope which was held closed by a wax seal. She found she could not tear the envelope open but was able to break the wax seal, causing the envelope to open and a black credit card fell into her hand with the words, "Barclay's Executive Club" and the Visa logo on it. It had her name, "Emma Gabrielle Granger" embossed on it.

Just then, Luna walked out of the dressing room to show Emma and Hermione the outfit. Emma saw the joy on Luna's face. The pants and top fit perfectly and the top had a brown kitten on it that Luna had been excited about. Emma looked at the card, then at Luna's beaming face, then at the card, then at Hermione's pleading expression then finally at Luna again. "It's beautiful, Luna and it looks wonderful on you. I'm sure Harry would want to see you wear that the next time you come over," Emma said, knowing she had been played, but not really being able to argue.

"It's very pretty, Luna," Hermione said, smiling at her friend's happiness.

"I'm going to try the next one on!" Luna exclaimed and disappeared back into the dressing room.

"Hermione, what has Harry gone and done?" Emma asked.

"He told me when we were down at his vault that he didn't want us to ever not be happy and that if you wanted to buy something to make yourself or someone close you happy, he wanted to make sure you had the means to do it," Hermione explained, trying her best not to cry at the generosity of the boy she cared so much about. "He had Ironclaw give Daddy one, too. Ironclaw told Harry and me he was going to have Steelfist talk to the two of you about it," Hermione explained.

Emma just nodded at Hermione as she listened to Steelfist's words echo in her head. _**"Please do not give Harry too much of a talking to this summer about spending his gold. If you do discuss it with him, provide him with gentle reminders about the value of money versus the value of happiness. He should be allowed to do something he hasn't been allowed to do the last nine and a half years and that is to be a child. If he wants to buy something for one of you or for Hermione, or for anyone else, please let him do so and let him know honestly how much the item means to you, but reinforce each and every time how much he means to you, both in emotional terms and verbalization. He needs to be genuinely loved..."**_

Luna came out of the dressing room again, this time wearing a pastel lavender dress with white lace accents, a big bow on the back and a fluffy chiffon skirt, darling little white socks and white patent leather shoes. Luna twirled around as she walked out of the fitting room, causing her skirt to fly out widely, her smile lighting up the entire floor. Hermione squealed and started giggling at Luna's antics. Emma, too, could almost feel the tangible nature of Luna's excitement at the dress.

"Oh! We are definitely getting you that!" Emma said excitedly, walking over to Luna and giving her a hug, which Luna returned emphatically. Luna then turned to Hermione who was still smiling ear-to-ear.

"You look amazingly lovely in that, Luna!" Hermione exclaimed, opening her arms to accept an embrace from Luna, who rushed over and gave Hermione a hug.

"Should I try the others on?" Luna asked nervously. Hermione looked at her questioningly. "I mean, I really like these two outfits and they're expensive and..." Luna was cut off by Hermione.

"Luna, Harry would want you to try them all on. You said you liked them all when we were picking them out. You need to try them all on. If you like all of them, we'll just have to get you all of them," Hermione explained, giving the younger girl another hug.

Luna nodded with a smile and ran back to the changing room.

"Mum, I am going to try on one of my outfits," Hermione said.

Emma smiled and nodded. "We also need to stop by the first floor for you, Honey," she said, pointedly looking at Hermione's developing bust line, causing Hermione to blush and nod.

Hermione entered the fitting room. The two girls alternated between showing Emma and each other their outfits. When it was time to visit the first floor, Emma's critical eye also decided it was a good time to have the pre-talk talk with both girls.

-oOoOo-

After getting seven pairs of shoes, two suits, three pairs of denim jeans, several shirts and a veritable mountain of undergarments, Dan lead Harry to the ground floor.

"Harry, you said you wanted to get something nice for Hermione for Christmas and I know Hermione seems to like the necklaces and ear rings we've gotten her here in the past," Dan said, bringing Harry to the designer jewellery section.

Harry looked around but nothing really caught his attention. He looked through an archway and saw a very properly dressed man and woman amongst cases of other jewellery and began walking over.

"Harry," Dan began hesitantly, "you didn't see anything here you'd think she'd like?"

"Not really. Can we look over here?" Harry asked and indicated to the room beyond the archway.

"Well, Son, we can look," Dan said with a smile.

Harry walked over and was looking at the items on display. Dan was standing back, trying his best not to hover and not to look too concerned about the prices of the items Harry was looking at. A smartly-dressed young woman walked over to him and he directed her to Harry. She nodded and walked over to Harry. "How are you doing this morning, young man? Looking for something special for someone special?" she asked pleasantly with a smile.

Harry looked up at the woman and looked carefully at her face. Unlike the maître d from dinner last evening, this woman was genuinely pleasant and wanted to be helpful. "My best friend. She's the nicest, kindest person in the whole world," Harry said, a bit embarrassed.

The woman lead Harry over to a chair and sat down next to him. "Is she your age?" the woman asked.

Harry nodded. "She's ten months older than I am," he said.

"Do you know if she prefers gold or platinum?" the woman asked. Dan did his utmost not to say anything. But, of course, Harry looked over at him with a questioning look.

"She prefers gold, Harry," Dan stage whispered. The woman looked up at Dan then back down to Harry.

"And in what month was she born?" the woman asked.

"September," Harry replied. _Gee! If buying jewellery is this easy, I wonder why Dad doesn't buy Mum more. I'll have to ask him._

"And is this a single, special gift or are you looking for something spontaneous for today, something for her birthday and something for Christmas so they can all match?" the woman asked.

"Wow! I hadn't even thought about that. All three, I think," Harry said. Dan swallowed. _How am I going to break it to him that my credit cards won't cover even a single piece from this room,_ Dan thought.

"Does she have any particularly favourite animals or anything else special?" the woman asked.

"Do you know what a griffon is?" Harry asked then smacked himself in the head. "Never mind, that was a stupid question," he said, feeling like an idiot, looking down at his shoes.

"Young sir," she said authoritatively, causing Harry to look up into her eyes, which were alight with amber fire. _Just like Hermione's eyes_, he thought. "You are the client and that was most certainly not a stupid question," she continued, putting her hand gently on his shoulder. "We actually have both griffins and rampant lions in gold and platinum. In fact, if I may, I would like to bring a few selected pieces out to show you what we have that I think your young lady may fancy," the woman said.

Harry just nodded. "I will be back momentarily then," she said and walked over to where a young man had been placing items on two half-metre black velvet squares, which she then brought over to show Harry a minute later. She sat back down and held one of the squares up for Harry to see. In the centre of the square was a gold and platinum ring with a rampant griffon with sapphire eyes clutching a diamond in each hand that drew Harry's eye. Encircling the ring on the bottom was an interlaced diamond and sapphire palmyre necklace with a larger sapphire in the centre surrounded by diamonds and pear-shaped sapphires. To either side of the necklace were ear rings which matched the ring. There were a few other items on the first square, but these three mesmerized Harry. The woman described each of the pieces, noting the weight in troy ounces and the number of carats, but Harry could only think about how Hermione would squeal when she saw them.

"The ring, the necklace and the matching ear rings from this square, please," Harry said.

The young woman then showed Harry the other square. "I don't intend to be presumptuous, but these items are, in many ways more for daily wear and at the same time reflect a more lasting commitment, so you may not find them to your liking," she said, removing the black silk cloth.

Dan looked at the contents of the square and wondered if he was going to have a stroke standing in Harrod's.

Harry looked at the contents of the square and didn't realize he was holding his breath.

Arrayed along the middle of the square were four sets of three rings each. The two sets on the left and the set on the right were less interesting to Harry. The third set screamed "Hermione" at the top of its lungs. The promise ring was wrought, intertwined gold and platinum with twin rows of diamonds all the way around the outside. As they were partially assembled on the square, the engagement ring nested within the promise ring and had a six-point-two-carat, D-IF, round brilliant diamond held in place by two rampant lions. The wedding ring which fit around it was comprised of two, three-quarter-carat trillion-shaped sapphires.

Harry pointed it out to Dan. "Dad, do you think Hermione would like this one?" Harry asked.

Dan had lost the ability to speak when the black silk was removed. All he could do was swallow and nod.

Harry smiled innocently up at him and turned back to the young woman. "This set, too, please," he said. The young woman smiled as the young man who was helping her took the two squares away.

"Was there anything else you were looking for today?" she asked.

"Oh!" Harry exclaimed, slapping his forehead. "I completely forgot about Luna!" He looked at the young woman. "I have another friend. She is very sweet and very shy. She is also my age," Harry explained, trying to remember all the questions the woman had asked about Hermione. "She likes horses and unicorns. I think she would like gold and platinum as well. She was born in February," Harry finished, unable to think of any other information about Luna. The woman was about to speak when Harry interrupted. "Oh and she likes to hug. So does Hermione," he said, trying to be helpful.

The woman smiled at him. "Let me see what I can come up with," she said and walked over to where the young man was assembling another square with a somewhat sceptical look on his face.

"Barbara, he's just a kid. You've shown him two-and-a-half-million pounds worth of jewellery he thinks he's going to buy using his allowance. You're wasting our time," the young man whispered to the young woman, although dutifully putting together the very best selection he could based on the information he heard over the young woman's lapel microphone.

"Call it woman's intuition, William, but somehow, and I do not know the reasons, I think he is going to make a couple of young girls very happy today or tonight," she said, taking the black square from him and walking over to where Harry was sitting.

Dan simply sat in one of the chairs and watched as Harry looked at more jewellery; this time for Luna.

The young woman removed the black silk from the square and Harry immediately picked out three pieces he knew Luna would love. Slightly off-centre was a platinum and gold ring with diamonds around the edge and surrounding a three-carat, round-cut amethyst, next to it was a pair of amethyst and diamond ear ring and below it was an amethyst and diamond necklace which almost perfectly matched Hermione's. "These three, please," Harry said, pointing out the items. The young woman smiled and the young man came over and took the black square away.

"Anything else for you today, young man?" she asked respectfully.

Harry looked over at Dan. "Dad? Did you want to get Mum something while we're here?" Harry asked.

Dan looked at Harry, wondering when the precise moment was he had lost control of the situation. _Was it when we walked in here or was it this morning driving here? _He thought. "Not today, Son," Dan managed to say.

"And how did you wish to pay for your purchases today, sir?" the young woman asked Harry.

"Dad? Can I use your credit card, please?" Harry asked seriously.

"Son, I don't think..." Dan began only to be cut off by Harry.

"Dad, did you forget your Barclay's card? It's in the envelope you got from the bank yesterday," Harry said.

Dan suddenly felt something in the back pocket of his slacks. He pulled it out and saw that it was a jet black envelope. He opened the clasp and within was his Gringott's-issued passport with a red envelope sandwiched within the passport. He broke the wax seal on the red envelope and a black credit card fell into his hand. "Barclay's Executive Club" and the Visa logo on it. It had his name, "Daniel Robert Granger" embossed on it.

"I apparently remembered it," Dan said, somewhat in shock, handing the card over to Harry and hearing Steelfist's words echo in his mind.

"Thanks, Dad! Here you go, Miss," Harry said, handing the card to the young woman.

"I shall be back directly," she said and, with a rather stunned expression on her face, walked over to the till and entered the card information into the credit terminal. One minute later, the telephone next to the till rang. Barbara picked it up. "Good morning and thank you for calling The Fine Jewellery Room at Harrod's London. This is Barbara speaking. How may I assist you?"

"Miss, This is the security desk at Barclay's Executive Club. We're calling concerning a transaction you are attempting to process on one of our member's cards ending in two zed nine three and we want to insure Doctor Granger is satisfied with the service he is receiving," the voice on the telephone said. "Considering the amount of the purchase in question, we have notified Doctor Granger's security detail and they will be arriving shortly. While we at Barclay's well respect the quality and dedication to client satisfaction and safety Harrod's has, we are equally certain Harrod's respects the quality and dedication Barclay's has for our mutual clients," the voice said.

"Certainly, Sir. We were just about to wrap Doctor Granger's son's purchases," Barbara said.

"Our team will be right over, Miss Walker," the voice said on the telephone. The line disconnected.

Barbara imprinted the card and carried the card and the chit over to Dan.

"If you could sign here and initial here, here and here, Sir," she said. It was only then that she realized the person on the telephone had called her by her last name. _How did they know that?_ she wondered.

Dan couldn't bring himself to look at the total. He just signed and initialled three times.

"Sir, I also received a telephone call. I understand your security detail is on their way to assist you with transporting your purchases," she said.

Dan looked over at Harry. "Security detail?" he asked.

Harry looked at Dan and wiggled his eyebrows. "Dad, the Barclay's team," Harry said, then looked over at the young woman, "all the members of our team have nifty names, like Skullcrusher and Kneebreaker!" Harry said excitedly.

As Harry was saying "Kneebreaker", eight men in dark grey suits wearing ear pieces entered The Fine Jewellery Room and gravitated towards Harry and Dan, the only two clients in the room. "Doctor Granger," he addressed Dan, then turned to Harry, "My Lord, good morning. Steelfist was moderately concerned as there was another warning alarm at your parents' practice. Would you like us to transport your purchases or would would prefer they remain in your presence, along with a few members of the detail to insure they are not somehow misplaced?" one of the men asked Harry.

Harry looked at Dan, who was still in shock at the items Harry had bought for Hermione AND Luna.

"Miss, which of the boxes have the single rings in them?" Harry asked.

"These two, young sir," she said, handing him two specific boxes.

"Thank you and thank you so much for your help today. You were amazing!" Harry exclaimed.

"I am happy I could be of service," Barbara said with a smile.

One of the other men in the security detail opened a briefcase he was carrying which Barbara had not seen before _Where was he hiding that? _was her first thought, as he set the briefcase on the counter and opened it using a complex system of combination locks and the twisting of the handle. The case opened and she placed Harry's purchases, except the two rings, within. The man closed the case and set the locks again, two other members of the team verifying the locks were, indeed, locked.

"We will have this case placed in your Founder's Wing, My Lord," the man with the briefcase said. He and three of the security detail left after nodding to Harry and Dan.

Harry then looked up at Dan, "Dad, maybe we should go find Mum, Hermione and Luna and get lunch before you have to go back to work?"

Dan nodded mutely. _How in the blue blazes was I able to buy all of that with a credit card?_ he thought as he followed Harry to the escalators, followed by four, disillusioned, muggle-born security staff from Gringott's.

-oOoOo-

When they arrived on the first floor, Emma led the two girls to the lingerie department. Both girls were looking somewhat embarrassed at the array of undergarments. Neither had ever seen so many colours or styles before and some of the items left them wondering what exactly they were for, especially when they passed the sets having lace gloves. Emma wasn't sure if she spotted the sales woman first of vice versa, but the sales woman clearly saw the look of relief on Emma's face. The sales woman looked at Emma, who looked pointedly at the two girls.

"Good morning, Ladies. My name is Janice. Is this your first time in the Lingerie Boutique?" she asked, already knowing the answer, but sporting a friendly, warm smile.

Both girls just nodded, a bit embarrassed.

"Well, I will answer any and all questions you might have," she said, quickly glancing up at Emma, who nodded.

Emma introduced the girls, "I am Emma and this is Hermione and Luna."

"Very nice to meet you. Since this is your first time here, let's talk about your needs as growing, young women," Janice began, leading Luna and Hermione over to a quiet sitting area and motioning them to sit down, after which she sat.

"Now, you may have noticed that some girls develop more quickly and more noticeably than others," Janice said, and both girls nodded. "And I see that she is your mother," she said to Hermione, gesturing to Emma. Hermione nodded with a smile. "Is she your mother as well, Luna?" she asked.

"No, Ma'am," Luna said, her eyes glassing over slightly.

"Well, as we work through your friend's needs, I will ask you questions to see what your needs might be. Will that work?" Janice asked. Luna nodded, but her excitement level had clearly dropped.

Turning her attention back to Hermione, Janice began explaining Hermione's development. "When I see such a noticeable likeness between mother and daughter, it is fairly easy to predict the daughter will develop along similar lines. Can you tell me, Emma, at what age your body stopped developing?" Janice asked.

"I was sixteen, I believe, when my bust stopped growing larger," Emma said.

Hermione looked at her mother in shock. Janice simply nodded. Luna made an "Eep!" sound.

"So you can expect relatively gradual development, Hermione, but likely you will require more frequent changes in the size of your brassieres due to these developments," Janice said, then turned her attention to Luna. "Luna, compared to Emma, is your mother the same, smaller or more full-figured?" she asked.

Luna began crying and held onto Hermione. Emma looked at Janice and explained, "Luna's mother was killed in an accident a few years ago. Let's just plan to get the same items for Luna that we get for Hermione. That way she has what she needs and, should she need changes, we'll simply come back to get items which meet her needs."

Janice nodded and took Luna's hand. "Luna, I apologise for causing you to cry. I had no intention of doing so," she said earnestly.

Luna nodded and squeezed Hermione once more before sitting up and wiping the tears from her eyes.

Janice smiled at the girls then continued on, trying to be especially sensitive to keep from hurting Luna again. She talked to the girls about the pain they may experience while they're developing as well as the importance of proper garments to minimize the pain as well as help them feel more feminine and beautiful. With that, she stood and walked them over to the sections where the garments were for young women. She then talked about the importance of the fabric, the different styles of strapping available, why it was important for developing girls to use sports brassieres during athletic activities and how important it was to be have someone they trusted to talk about any questions or feelings they were having. Luna and Hermione both looked at Emma when Janice said this. Janice then explained the importance of having at least two pairs of matching knickers for each brassiere and the importance of the colours of the undergarments and how they should either match or disappear beneath the clothes they would be wearing.

A thoroughly educated, embarrassed and equipped pair of girls left the first floor, both wearing their first-ever bras.

-oOoOo-

As they looked around the fourth floor in search of Emma and the girls, Dan had enough time to regain his senses and sat Harry down in The Tree House to have his pre-Talk talk.

"Harry," Dan began, looking at Harry, "how much do you know about the differences between boys and girls?" he asked.

Harry looked a bit nervous, "I... that is... girls are pretty and they," he paused to swallow, "um... smell nice," he stopped.

Dan smiled. "Is that all?" he asked.

Harry closed his eyes to think, uncomfortable with Dan's questions. "They like to hug a lot, which is really, REALLY nice. It feels so right to hug Hermione and Luna," he said, then opened his eyes wide in shock that he said that aloud. His fear lessened when he saw Dan was still somewhat smiling. "They're the only two girls I have ever hugged, Dad."

Dan nodded. "Anything else about girls?" he asked, still smiling.

Harry looked around to make certain no one was nearby, "I can feel girls' magics mix with mine when they're close by. That's how I was able to hug their magic. That feels so natural, too. It's like I can almost feel how they're feeling and what it is they want to feel."

"You can't feel a boy's magic?" Dan asked.

"When Neville hugged me at the reading... well... I could sense him there... his magic there... but it didn't mix with mine," Harry said, then got a thoughtful look on his face. "Girls are way more practical than boys. Did you know Hermione taught me how to write essays?" Harry asked. Dan shook his head. "I wasn't taught how to write essays in school and didn't really know how to study hard because whenever I got better grades than Dudley, I got thrashed and thrown in my cupboard for cheating," he said, cringing as Dan's smile faded slightly and a tightness grew around the outer corners of his eyes. Harry's voice became quieter and his tone became fearful once more, "I didn't mean to make you angry, Dad. I'm sorry," Harry said, trying not to flinch.

Dan realized something in his demeanour must have set Harry off so he began his non-visual calming exercises as he spoke in a quiet voice, "Harry, you have not made me angry and please don't be afraid of me, Son. If you do upset either Mum or I, we will have a quiet, reasoned discussion. You will never receive a thrashing or get locked in a dark room and if I became angry, it was not at you but at what those people did to you. Forgive me for reacting so badly to hear of someone hurting you. Do you understand, Son, that I am not upset, at all, with you?" Dan asked earnestly.

Every time Harry heard Dan call him "Son" the walls around his heart broke down a little bit and the fear he had of Dan and Emma eased. Harry nodded and a little smile came to his face. "Dad?" he asked tentatively.

"Yes, Harry?" Dan asked, almost afraid of what Harry was going to ask.

"Why were you so... 'upset' isn't quite the right word, but I can't think of a better one... when I got Luna and Hermione their gifts?" Harry asked.

Dan thought for a moment, "I suppose I was surprised more than anything else. Those items were, first and foremost, very expensive, Harry," Dan said, gathering his thoughts.

"But do you think they will like them?" Harry asked with concern.

"Harry, I think you had best be prepared to be kissed on the cheeks all night until you three fall asleep on the sofa bed again," Dan said with a grin, _Because there is no way in Hell I am going to let one or both of the girls sneak into your bedroom tonight to thank you in any improper way!_ he thought.

Harry smiled. "I am also concerned about how they might view them, Son. Girls tend to think of rings for very specific, long-term relationships. While I think you got them those things because you want them to enjoy them and know you are their best friend," which Harry nodded at, "I think you're going to have to explain to them that the rings are tokens of how much you like them as best friends and how much their friendship and happiness means to you. Make sense?" Dan asked.

Harry smiled in relief, "Thank you, Dad. I was going to ask you how I should give them to them."

"Well, Harry, if it was me, I would..." and Dan explained precisely how he would present the rings to his two best friends. He then talked about the wonderful differences between boys and girls and how the two developed in different ways and to not rush into anything and to think about his feelings before he simply acted on them He also told Harry that he would be there for him when he had questions or just wanted to talk and then reaffirmed that Lily and James would be proud of him, at least as proud of him as Dan and Emma were.

When he was done, he received a hug and a "Thanks, Dad!" from Harry.

-oOoOo-

Emma, Hermione and Luna all saw Dan and Harry in The Tree House. Harry had just given Dan a hug and was about to sit back down when he heard a duet of screams.

"HARRY!" Luna and Hermione shouted out as they ran up to him and gathered him into a hug, then kissing his cheeks before sitting down on either side of him. Each one of them took one of his hands.

Dan stood and gave Emma a quick peck and a hug and the two of them sat on the other side of the table from the three children.

"Harry, you look quite smart in your new outfit," Emma said, impressed with the clothing he had selected. Harry blushed at the compliment.

"You look quite handsome, Harry," Hermione said, squeezing his hand and leaning her head on his shoulder, causing Harry to blush further.

"Yes, quite handsome, Harry," Luna said, snuggling into Harry's side.

Harry squeezed Luna's hand and took his arm and wrapped it around her, kissing her on the top of the head. He then turned his head and kissed Hermione's head. He then turned back to Emma and Dan with a pleasantly relaxed and happy smile on his face.

"Harry, are you hugging their magic again?" Emma asked mischievously, seeing the looks of utter bliss on the girls' faces.

Harry got a worried look on his face and closed his eyes to make sure he hadn't accidentally hugged their magic. He check his mental water spigot and it was turned all the way off. "No, Mum..." he began but was interrupted by Luna.

"No. It's just so nice to have such a good friend and I just wanted him to know how special I think he is," Luna explained.

"I just wanted him to know how much I treasure his friendship and how much I missed him while shopping," Hermione said, as her eyes closed and a sigh escaped her lips.

Emma and Dan looked at one another and Dan came to the realization the girls were about to have their demonstration completely blown out of the water when he was saved by the service girl welcoming them and handing them their menus. They all decided on their food and drinks and ate while they had pleasant, light conversations about their shopping and the things they saw.

As they finished their meals and stood to go, Dan and Emma taking up the rear, Harry turned to the two girls then knelt down and looked up at Hermione and Luna. Emma raised an eyebrow at Harry then quickly looked at Dan, who had an ear-to-ear smile on his face. As Harry began speaking, Emma returned her attention to the kneeling boy.

"Hermione. You have been my best friend since nearly the first day of school. You have helped me in ways no one else ever helped me. You taught me how to properly study. You taught me how to write essays. You taught me that friends... true friends... stick together. You've always believed me and believed in me. Your faith has never wavered. When tragedy struck, you went so far as to open your parents' heart to me and they in turn opened their home to me. You saw the real me when everyone else only saw what they wanted to see. I want to give this to you as a token of what your friendship has meant to me and I hope I never do anything to cause that friendship to waver," Harry said, his eyes never leaving Hermione's tear-filled eyes as he placed gold and platinum, rampant griffon ring with the sapphires and diamonds on her ring finger. Although it was a little loose, when he said, "I promise to be your friend from this day to the end of the world and to be there when you need me," and kissed her hand, it automatically sized to her finger.

Emma looked at the ring Harry had put on her daughter's finger and nearly fainted. Hermione, on the other hand, felt as if she had just been proposed to. She was floating on a cloud and she was too happy and too shocked to say anything. Harry, however, being the clueless boy that he was, simply thought she was happy. Luna was very happy for her friend and was shocked when Harry still had not stood but instead took her hand.

"Luna. Although I have not known you nearly as long as I have known Hermione, you have shown me courage and wisdom, strength and beauty and the kind of feelings friends can have for one another. When I was at my lowest, although I could feel your fear of rejection through your magic, you showed me what true courage was when you hugged me anyway. You have faced a similar tragedy in your life as I have faced in mine and, while I know you don't have many friends yet, please know in your heart of hearts that you hold a very special place in my heart of hearts," he said, then placed the amethyst and diamond ring on her ring finger. "I promise to be your friend from this day to the end of the world and to be there when you need me," and kissed her hand, causing the ring to automatically sized to her finger.

Luna, too, felt as if Harry had just proposed to her. As if she was a fairy tale princess being saved from dragons, trolls and other nasty things that liked eating young princesses for breakfast.

He then reached out for Hermione's hand once more and stood, holding the hands he had placed the rings on. "I shall never have truer friends in all my life," Harry said and pulled the girls into a hug.

Dan had to hold Emma from falling at what Harry had done. Dan did get to hear Emma's stunned whispers of, "Oh my goodness!" six or eight times.

Dan leaned his lips right next to Emma's and whispered so softly even he could not hear his words but was certain Emma could. "I coached him through it. Notice he didn't use the word 'love' anywhere. I told him that if he said that word that the girls would think too much into it. And if you're simply shocked about the nature or cost of the gifts, remember what Steelfist said and let it go."

Emma nodded, then turned and looked at Dan with devotion in her eyes and kissed Dan far less than chastely. Dan quickly looked down at the children, but they were still involved in a closed-eye, three-way, happy hug.

Emma and Dan came up from their lung-searing kiss to see the girls still holding Harry and Harry having a beautific, happy, innocent smile on his face.

Emma watched them for a few more minutes and noticed none of the three seemed to be getting tired of or feeling awkward about hugging one another for so long, so she decided to gently break it up. "Harry, those were really nice friendship rings you gave the girls, weren't they, girls?" she asked.

All three children opened their eyes and looked at the other two, slightly in embarrassment.

"Harry is pretty wonderful," Luna said shyly, then looked at Hermione, "Hermione is really special, too."

Hermione blushed and found it difficult to look into Harry's eyes. When she managed it, she looked down again at her shoes, blushing even more. "Harry is amazing," she said. She then looked over at Luna, "You're pretty wonderful, too, Luna."

-oOoOo-


	8. Promises Made, Warnings Received

-o-AN-o-  
>A reviewer, Mione05, asked about "Secret Loves Year 1" and posting it here. I could bore you all with the technical details, but apparently hard drives have many ways of destroying...er...storing data. While I still have the outline of the story, I am sad to say the story itself died a horrible death, as did a huge amount of notes for other stories along with pictures, videos and an entire library of fan fiction downloaded from various sites.<p>

As soon as I am done with Secret Loves 2 and Harry Potter and the Living Wards, I will be coming back to rewrite Secret Loves. My ludicrously optimistic time frame says two to three months. Which means you could read Secret Loves 2, review it and then come back when Secret Loves starts getting posted and have forgotten Secret Loves 2 so you can reread it and enjoy it all over again!  
>-o-AN-o-<p>

-oOoOo-

The five of them entered The Leaky Cauldron, pausing only long enough to change into robes, Dan and Emma included, and entered Diagon Alley. They headed past Ollivander's, following Luna to the offices of The Quibbler. Luna knocked a pattern of one medium knock, four short knocks, one long and one short knock and entered. It wasn't clear to the other four the reasons for the knocking because once the door was opened, the mechanical noises from within made conversation impossible.

There was a huge expanse of room filled with operating printing presses, or so it seemed. Unlike muggle presses, these presses not only printed the material, but cut, bound and bundled the finished product. At present, it seemed the presses were creating the current week's issue of Witches Weekly.

There was a subtle change to the timbre of the sound as all the presses simultaneously ran out of paper, printed, cut, bound and bundled their final copy and shut down.

The silence was deafening and took Hermione and Harry by surprise.

"Hello, My Little Luna! I will be right there!" they heard Xeno shout from deep within the building. They could see motion somewhere in and amongst the presses as Xeno came closer, threading his way through the presses, which seemed to be placed in a somewhat haphazard fashion around the warehouse. As he got closer, Harry and Hermione were surprised by his very muggle-appearing, white overalls with dabs of ink and grease here and there. As he came up to them, he pulled his wand and waved it over himself, changing into an outfit that had colours four members of the group had never seen before.

"And how is my beautiful daughter?" Xeno said, reaching down and picking Luna up and giving her a twirling hug. Xeno could feel the happiness radiating from Luna in waves and her laughter was genuinely happy. She kissed Xeno on the cheek as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

"Did you miss me, Daddy?" Luna asked as Xeno kissed her back on the cheek.

"Very much! Sunflower! Did you have a good time?" he asked.

She nodded vehemently. Xeno looked at Dan and Emma. "Thank you for making Luna's time with you so wonderful," Xeno said. His smile suddenly faded from his face. "Sugar Plum, I have a lot of work to do this week and I was just awarded the printing contract from the Ministry for all of their forms so we're not going to have a lot of time to spend together this summer," he said sadly. "I did bring some of your things from the house so you could play in the office while I work." Xeno then noticed the ring on Luna's finger and looked at it closely. He suddenly looked up at Harry and stared at him piercingly. Harry was smiling as he looked at Luna in Xeno's arms. Xeno then noticed that Harry was holding Hermione's hand and the glint of a similar ring glimmered from Hermione's hand as well. _Two of them? Is he going to be using the old laws then?_ Xeno thought.

Dan decided it was a good time to ask Xeno about upcoming plans. "Xeno, could you and I step into your office for a moment. I'm sure Luna could show Emma, Hermione and Harry around your presses," he said.

Xeno looked a bit surprised at the cordial tone and looked at Luna, who was nodding and smiling at him. He had expected a much more formal request. "Certainly, Dan. Now remember, Luna. Only point at things with your finger. No touching anything and no casting spells."

"Yes, Daddy. I remember," Luna said.

Xeno motioned for Dan to follow him and the two wove their way through the presses and entered an office area. While the presses had appeared to have been set down wherever they could be, the office was clearly the work of someone with an obsessive-compulsive disorder. Everything was labelled, everything was filed. The files on Xeno's desk were tagged much the same way Emma and Dan's patient files were tagged. There was not a single item out of place.

"Xeno, I was wondering if Luna could join Emma, Hermione, Harry and me on our family vacation to France. Apparently Harry has a château in the South and Luna very much enjoyed spending time with our two children," Dan explained.

"It is clear to me she enjoyed her time with your family, Dan, but I am concerned," Xeno said, turning around and handing Dan a glass of grape juice, having poured one for himself as well. Dan took a sip and was pleasantly surprised to find it was not alcoholic. "Can you explain to me the reason our daughters are wearing betrothal rings?" Xeno asked, waiting for Dan to finish swallowing his sip.

Dan looked surprised. "What do you mean by betrothal rings? Harry bought those for the girls as friendship rings."

"Dan, I don't know how it works in the muggle world, but those rings are singing with magic. I imagine the only way those rings would come off is if the girl wearing it removed it of her own free will," Xeno said thoughtfully.

"Well, I thought it was a little odd they were a bit loose when Harry first put them on them this morning, but they sized to fit the girls' fingers perfectly. I just chalked that up to Harry or the girls performing some magic to make them do that," Dan said. _What the hell have I gotten Hermione and Harry into?_ he thought.

"Oh, I imagine it was their magic, certainly. Their combined magics, is my best guess. Have they been holding hands a great deal today?" Xeno asked.

Dan thought about it. "They've been holding hands since Harry put the rings on them," he looked at his watch, "which would be several hours now, except when you and Luna were hugging," Dan said.

"When will you be returning from this holiday, Dan?" Xeno asked, taking a large sip of his juice.

"August twenty-fourth. We're planning on leaving this Friday," Dan explained, wondering why the sudden deflection in the conversation.

"Have the five of you already eaten lunch?" Xeno asked.

"Yes, we just came from lunch," Dan explained.

"Well then ice cream is in order. My treat," Xeno said, setting his glass down and reaching for his over-robe.

"I don't think that..." Dan was interrupted.

"I am afraid I must insist, Dan. I think it important you take Luna now so that she can become more acclimated to being in the muggle world as well as spend time this week doing things other than playing alone and wishing she was spending time with her friends that are real people." Xeno looked up into Dan's eyes. "Do you realize that, even when Maia was alive, Luna has only ever had one friend and she never got to spend time with her after her friend's seventh birthday party. Her friend's brothers frightened her so badly that she came running home, crying," Xeno explained, his voice clearly reflecting his almost failing to hold back his emotions. He pinched his nose and squared his shoulders before continuing. "I would consider it a personal favour if you would do this for me. For Luna."

"Ice cream it is, then. We will bring her back to you Monday, August twenty-fifth, Xeno," Dan said.

"I think it would be best if I met you at The Leaky Cauldron and took you and your family out to dinner in the Alley when you return. We can decide then what is best for the week prior to returning to Hogwarts, Dan," Xeno explained.

Dan nodded. He felt as if something was going on but judging by Xeno's demeanour, would not get the answer he was looking for, if he asked. Xeno opened the office door and gestured for Dan to exit. Xeno followed Dan out of the office, pulled his wand and waved it over the office door. Dan heard at least ten locks locking the door.

Dan followed Xeno through the seemingly random path back to Harry and the girls. "Kumquat! Meet us back by the door!" Xeno shouted in the still-silent warehouse. Dan heard Hermione and Luna giggling off to the left. The two groups arrived at the entrance simultaneously; Harry blushing and Luna and Hermione trying their best to hold in their giggles. Emma was smiling, blushing a bit and looking at Harry.

Trying to save Harry from further embarrassment at the moment, Dan decided to discuss their destination. "Mister Lovegood wishes to take us all out for ice cream and he has a surprise for us all," Dan explained.

Xeno looked at him and smiled while picking an excited Luna up and giving her another peck on the cheek and a loving hug. "That's right! Fortescue's for a surprise!" Xeno exclaimed cheerfully.

They left The Quibbler office and headed down Diagon Alley to Fortescue's. Luna whispered to Hermione, who nodded. The girls looked at Harry again and giggled as he held out chairs for them on either side of his chair. When he sat down, both of his hands were occupied by the girls on either side. On the other side of the table, Emma sat between Dan and Xeno with Xeno sitting across from Luna.

Florean Fortescue was surprised. He had not seen Xeno Lovegood at his establishment since before Maia Lovegood was killed. At the funeral, his friend Xeno, who had previously been a boisterous, happy fellow was an empty husk of the man he once knew. Something must have happened recently because he appeared to be nearly back to his old self.

"Florean! My dear friend! I want you to meet some truly wonderful people. You know my daughter, Luna, of course," Xeno said, gesturing to Luna.

"A pleasure to see you again, young miss. Going to start Hogwarts this year, no?" Florean said in greeting.

"Yes, Sir, and I am terribly excited to be going!" Luna exclaimed and squeezed Harry's hand.

"And this is Daniel and Emma Granger," Xeno introduced them.

Florean reached across from the head of the table and kissed Emma's hand and shook Dan's hand. "A pleasure to meet you," he said.

"This is their daughter, Hermione," Xeno said, gesturing to Hermione.

"A pleasure to meet you as well, Miss. If I see it correctly in my mind's eye, you shall grow up to be at least as lovely as your beautiful mother," Florean said with a flourish, causing Hermione to blush.

"Thank you, Sir," Hermione said.

"And this is Harry Evans, a good friend of both the Grangers and the Lovegoods," Xeno said.

Florean looked askance at Harry for a moment then reached out to shake his hand. "A pleasure to meet you Master Evans," then softly, "I knew your parents, My Lord, and I am honoured with your presence but shall keep your secrets," he said quietly.

Harry nodded, swallowed and said, "Thank you, Sir. I'm told you have the best ice cream in magical Europe."

"Really now. That is a nice thing for someone to say. Do you recall who told you that?" Florean asked, wondering if the person who said such things could really have a proper opinion.

"Ironclaw and Steelfist of The People made mention of it, Sir," Harry said quietly.

Florean swallowed. If the Goblins thought he had the best ice cream, it must be true. "And what can I get all of you today? Ladies first!" Florean exclaimed.

"Mum?" Hermione asked.

Emma looked at the board in front of the building, "I think I will have an Ever-Lasting Strawberry Malt."

"Very good choice. And for you ladies?" Florean asked.

The two girls looked shyly at Harry before Luna looked up and said, "A quintuple double chocolate hot fudge Neapolitan sundae without nuts, with three cherries, three bananas, two spoons with a follow-on face wash, and two warm towels, please."

Harry looked at her questioningly but said nothing.

"Excellent choice. And for you, Master Granger?" Florean asked Dan.

"I believe I will have an Ever-Lasting Chocolate Malt," Dan said with a smile.

"And for you, Xeno?" Florean asked.

Xeno looked at Luna and Hermione holding Harry's hands, "I think I would like an Orange, Lime, Lemon sherbet, a follow-on face wash and a warm towel, please."

"I will have your orders out momentarily," Florean said and rushed off.

The girls leaned in and snuggled into Harry for the two minutes it took Florean to deliver the orders.

Dan and Emma were surprised doubly when they received their malts. Each was about the size of a small water glass, which they both consumed in less than thirty seconds. "Well, so much for Ever-Lasting," Emma said.

"Just wait a few seconds, Emma," Xeno said. Sure enough, a few moments later, their glasses were full again.

"How often will they do that?" Emma asked in surprise.

"Until you leave, the glass breaks or Florean closes for the night," Xeno said.

"That's wonderful!" Emma said and giggled, slurping at her malt until it began refilling again.

Xeno dispensed with a spoon, picked up his sundae bowl and began licking at it like a large, horizontal ice cream cone.

Harry was a little disappointed that Mister Fortescue didn't ask him what he wanted when he realized the reason for that.

Neither Hermione nor Luna would let go of his hands. Luna picked her spoon up and fed her spoonful to Harry. Hermione picked her spoon up and fed her spoonful to Luna. Luna picked up a second spoonful and fed Hermione. This went on until the sundae was gone, the girls always feeding the other two and never needing to feed themselves. When they were done eating their sundae, Luna carefully centred the sundae bowl on Harry and a gentle, warm, lemon-scented mist of water came out of the sundae bowl to rinse their lips and chins. A warm towel immediately appeared in front of Hermione and Luna. They each gently dried their side of Harry's face, dried their own faces then they each kissed Harry on the cheek.

"All clean," they announced in unison, then giggled shyly.

The three adults watched this with some amusement. Xeno finished his ice cream and his bowl similarly washed his face. He then dried it with the magically-appearing towel.

Although Dan and Emma continued drinking their malts, although a bit slower, Xeno reached across the table with his hands to take Luna's and Hermione's free hands. "Girls, and Harry, I have a surprise for you I hope all of you will like," Xeno said and knew he had their undivided attention. "I understand that Dan and Emma are taking the two of you on holiday in France starting Friday and not returning until a week before school," Xeno watched as Harry and Hermione nodded happily and Luna became a bit dejected, "and I was wondering if you two wouldn't mind it if Luna went with you."

Hermione squealed, released Xeno's hand, reached across Harry and pulled Luna into a hug. Harry exclaimed, "YES!" and scooted his chair back a bit and pulled both Hermione and Luna into a three-way hug. They remained this way for several minutes until Emma cleared her throat loudly a second time.

All three of them sat back in their chairs normally, shy smiles on all of their faces.

"I will take that as a 'Yes, we would like Luna to come with us'," Xeno said, then looked at his daughter.

"Skunkweed, would you like to spend the summer with Harry and Hermione?" Xeno asked.

"I would, Daddy, but I don't want to abandon you and not help you with the Snorkack hunt this year," Luna said with worry.

"Well, Cannabis, with the Ministry contracts and several other contracts I've recently been awarded, I didn't want to break it to you but I won't have the time this summer to take us on our hunt," Xeno explained, "and this gives you a wonderful opportunity to spend some time with your friends, and who knows what you might see on vacation in France."

Luna ran around the table and hugged her father for all she was worth, "I love you, Daddy!" Luna exclaimed.

"And I love you, too, Wildflower," Xeno said, kissing the top of her head. She looked up at him and smiled.

"Now I need to get back to the presses. Because you're going on holiday with them, you will get to spend the rest of the week with them and then you will see me at the end of August," Xeno said.

Luna nodded and hugged him again. Hermione and Harry stood and walked over to behind Luna. "Thank you, Mister Lovegood, for letting Luna come with us," Hermione said.

"Lord Lovegood, your heir shall remain safely with us until I return her to your care," Harry said formally and bowed to Xeno.

Xeno stood and looked at Harry, pondering him for a moment then smiled. "Lord Potter, House Lovegood would trust only one other with our Heir and the continuation of our line," and returned Harry's bow. The four magic users could feel the magic in the air build and then flash between Xeno, Harry and Luna.

"I had almost forgotten about that," Xeno said with a chuckle. "I take it that Sirius is teaching you Founders' Etiquette?"

Harry smiled as well, "Yes, Sir. Both Hermione and me," Harry looked shyly at Hermione.

"Really?" Xeno said, somewhat in surprise. Then looked at Hermione who was blushing and shyly smiling at Harry. "Well, perhaps he knows best. Harry, may I speak to you, Lord-to-Lord for a moment?" Xeno asked, then turned to Dan and Emma. "I must apologise, but what I need to speak to Harry about really must remain between the two of us," Xeno said. Dan and Emma nodded.

"Certainly, Sir," Harry said. Xeno clapped him on the shoulder and led him a bit away then erected some privacy charms and barrier wards.

"Although this is somewhat formal, Harry, do you mind if I call you Harry and only call you Lord Potter when is necessary?" Xeno asked.

"That would be fine, Sir," Harry replied.

"Good. Thank you, Harry. I understand from Dan that you gave Luna a ring in friendship today and you did the same with Hermione," Xeno said. Harry nodded. "Harry, do you know of the gifts the Founders were given by the elves?" Harry nodded. "And specifically, the gifts given to the House of Lovegood?" Harry nodded once again. "From what Dan tells me, when you placed them on the girls' fingers, they shrank to fit them perfectly," Xeno paused.

"They did. I just thought it was my magic making them fit," Harry said.

"You're half-right, Harry. Did Sirius explain the meaning of rings and other jewellery as they relate to you?" Xeno asked, looking at Harry, searching for any signs of deception or undue tension.

"No, Sir," Harry replied. Harry saw the intensity with which Xeno was looking at him. "Did I do something wrong, Sir?" Harry asked in concern.

Xeno smiled and shook his head, seeing no falseness in Harry, "No, Harry. It is nice to know Luna will be with genuinely honest and loving people," Xeno said. He then became serious. "And now for the formal part of our conversation, Harry." Xeno squared his shoulders, pulled his wand, looked at Harry and pointed his wand steadily at Harry's heart. "Lord Potter, as my Heir is the last of her line, I charge you with her safety, until you return her safely to my side, until she is safely ensconced or betrothed to her intended or until the world ends. So say I, Xenophilius Lovegood, Lord of House Lovegood."

Harry looked at the wand pointing at his heart and tried to remember what Sirius had told him. Harry drew his own wand and pointed it at Xeno's heart. "I, Harry Potter, Lord of House Potter, do freely accept this responsibility and will protect the Heir of House Lovegood, even to my own demise. So mote it be," Harry said calmly. A wash of magic covered both of them.

Xeno put his wand away and relaxed his shoulders in relief. "Thank you, Harry. This puts my mind at rest," Xeno said and held his hand out to be shaken by Harry.

Harry put his wand away and gripped Xeno's forearm, the way Sirius had taught him. "It is my privilege, Mister Lovegood," Harry said with a smile.

Xeno looked over at the Grangers and his daughter. They all looked a bit concerned. "Let's get back. It almost looks as if they thought we were cursing one another," Xeno said with a smile.

Xeno pulled down the wards and dispelled the charms and he walked Harry back over to the group.

"Well, that looked serious," Emma said, looking at Harry, but speaking to Xeno.

"It's a magical law issue, Emma. Should Luna need anything while she is with you, Harry is now her legal guardian in the magical world," Xeno explained. He then removed a folded piece of parchment with a wax seal from his pocket and handed it to Harry. "When you stop by Gringott's for Luna's needs for your holiday, please give them this. It will allow them to provide your parents with the necessary muggle paperwork for them to be her legal guardians in the muggle world. I would also suggest your parents make you Hermione's magical guardian while you are there. It would provide Hermione and your parents a greater level of safety from the Ministry as well as from anyone else who would wish to meddle in their affairs."

Dan and Emma were somewhat surprised but also pleased that Xeno had thought ahead enough to give them this should the need arise.

Xeno knelt down and pulled Luna into a hug, "My Little Foxglove, you enjoy your holiday. I love you with all of my heart and every breath I breathe," and held her for a few moments with his eyes closed.

"I love you, too, Daddy. I'll miss you," she said, smiling but a little sad.

"I will miss you, too, Buttercup. Take good care of your friends," Xeno said, releasing her and standing once again. "Take care, Harry," he said, ruffling his hair good-naturedly.

"Thank you, Mister Lovegood," Harry said with a smile.

Xeno took Hermione's hand and kissed it, then put his face next to her ear, "Take care of her for me and be the best friend you can be to her, please. She is going to need you," he whispered.

Hermione hugged him, looked up at him and nodded with a smile.

He took Emma's hand and kissed it, "Thank you for showing my daughter a wonderful time yesterday and today and for treating her like a princess." Emma looked into Xeno's eyes. He quickly looked at Dan. He reached out his hand to Dan to shake and Dan gripped Xeno's forearm as he expected this was the norm in the wizarding world. "Thank you for everything, Dan," Xeno simply said, squeezed Dan's forearm and released him.

"I have to go now. Have fun on your holiday!" he exclaimed as he rapidly walked back towards the offices of The Quibbler.

Dan and Emma looked at one another and felt something was off about Xenophilius Lovegood, but couldn't quite place the source of the feeling.

Dan looked down at his watch and was surprised it was half past one. "We need to get going as my first surgery is in just thirty minutes. If we hurry, I will just make it," he said to get the group going.

The five of them exited Diagon Alley, walked through the Leaky Cauldron, got to the car park and climbed into Dan's BMW. Emma looked turned around in the back seat and saw that Harry was in the middle and was helping Luna, then Hermione, with their seat belts before putting his own on. "All strapped in, Love," Emma said to Dan. He nodded, made it out of the car park and got to the office with a few minutes to spare. Dan and Emma stepped from the car to switch sides. "I'll call you when I am done for the day, Honey. You may as well find something local to do as I only have Mister Fister for an extraction and Mrs. Winkler for her root canal," he said.

"Yes, Dear. No gory details please. I think we'll just go to the park and feed the ducks or something equally mundane," Emma said, then gave him a kiss.

Dan waved to the children through the windscreen and went into the building. Emma walked around to the right side of the car and started it. She turned in her seat, "How would you like to go and feed the ducks at the park?" she asked.

Before Harry or Hermione could say anything, Luna asked, "They have kneazles at the park?"

Emma had no idea what Luna was asking, but fortunately Hermione rescued her. "Not that I know of, Luna. Why do you ask?"

Luna looked at Hermione in confusion. "Then what would we be feeding the ducks to?"

Hermione opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again, then closed it with a clicking of teeth.

Harry smiled at Luna's question, then giggled at Hermione's antics. Luna also giggled at Hermione.

"I think someone got pranked," Harry said, pulling Hermione head onto his shoulder. He turned his attention to a quietly laughing Emma, "That sounds like a lot of fun, Mum!"

Emma drove them down to the park and the four of them got out. Harry spent a few moments showing Luna how to release the seat belt and how to put it on again and make sure it was latched. Hermione showed her how to ensure the belt wasn't twisted and the proper placement on the hips to make sure she wasn't injured in an accident.

Meanwhile, Emma was taking a couple of loaves of dried bread from the boot from their "duck food" supply. They found a bench and sat. Emma sat on one end, then Hermione, then Luna and Harry sat on the far end. Emma noticed the change in the seating arrangement and mentioned it. "Harry, why are you not sitting between the girls?" she asked.

"It has to do with the promise I made to Luna's dad, Mum," he explained. Luna looked at Harry and smiled, taking his hand. Hermione smiled at Harry as well. She took Luna's free hand and squeezed it.

"May I ask what this promise was?" Emma asked, thinking to herself, _Do I really want to know?_

Harry looked out at the water thoughtfully for a few moments before turning to look at Emma. "I cannot tell you the exact wording of the promise, Mum, but I promised him I would take care of her and look out for her safety," he said, "and sitting on this side of her ensures no one can sneak up on her from here."

Emma tried to hide her amusement at what she thought of as Harry's simplistic view of protection, "That's a very good promise to have made, Harry. Did you make the same sort of promise to Dad about Hermione?"

Harry shook his head, "No Mum. I made that promise directly to Hermione. I can't do that to Luna because she is the Heir and not yet the head of her house."

Emma now showed open surprise. "Wait. You're telling me that, in the wizarding world, girls can inherit just as well as boys?"

Harry and Luna looked at Hermione, who nodded and looked at her mum. "In some families, Mum. Sirius told us that all four of the Founders' families are primogenial, while most of the other pureblood families practice patrilineal succession. So in Luna's case, she is the Heir to House Lovegood. There are some older pureblood families who also practice primogenial succession," Hermione explained, "including the Greengrass and Parkinson families."

"How... progressive... of them," Emma said, tossing a few more pieces of bread to the eager ducks.

"Actually, Mum, in the wizarding world it is considered an anachronism. Patrilineal succession has only been in common use for three hundred years in the wizarding world," Hermione explained.

Emma just shook her head and smiled. She then remembered the thread of her original thought and brought the discussion back to it, "So, Harry, how is it you had to make the promise to Mister Lovegood for Luna but you only made the promise to Hermione and not either myself or Dan?"

Hermione blushed and looked down at the water at Emma's question. Harry blushed as well, but Luna squeezing his hand in reassurance helped. "Well, there are a couple of reasons for that. One of the reasons, which I do not agree with, is that neither you nor Dad have magic so have no say, really, in the magical world, at least in Britain," Harry paused to collect his thoughts.

"In Britain," Emma repeated. "Why in Britain?" she asked.

"Because in almost every other country in the world, except Britain and South Africa, the magical governments recognize the rights and responsibilities of the non-magical parents of magical children," Hermione explained, "while Britain has an extremely ignorant position with regard to non-magical parents of magical children, South Africa used to be worse. Until five years ago, in South Africa, the magical children, along with their non-magical parents and any siblings, were shipped to Australia at their first demonstration of accidental magic. The South African government had an agreement with the magical government of Australia."

Emma absorbed this information, then looked at Harry again, "And the other reasons?" she asked.

"Um... I didn't know either you or Dad at the time and, well... you already know about the troll," Harry said sheepishly, looking down at the water again.

They sat for some time, feeding the ducks. Emma was processing everything she had heard and seen today. She wanted to have a conversation with Dan, and possibly Hermione, to talk about Xeno's behaviour. _Possibly stop by St Mungo's and talk to Sirius without Harry and Hermione..._ she thought.

Luna and Hermione were talking softly and being a bit giggly, occasionally sneaking glances at Harry. Harry had his eyes closed and was experimenting with his magical spigot and trying to see how his magic reacted to the world around him. He noted he could feel the two girls next to him almost as if they were a part of him._ Wouldn't it be cool if I could talk to them this way some day,_ he thought. He also felt small light voids in the magic in front of him and a slightly weaker area of magic next to Hermione. He opened his eyes. The light voids in front of him corresponded to the ducks, he determined. The weak magical field next to Hermione were the twins developing within Emma. _This is so cool! I wonder what else magic like this can do, _he thought. He closed his eyes again and felt the intermingling of the girls' magic with his own. He could still feel Luna holding his hand and that proximity helped him to separate out their individual magic fields. _Wow!_ he thought, _Now I wonder if I can hug them individually._ His thoughts were interrupted by Emma.

"We should get back and see if Dan is ready to go yet. Did you have a nice nap, Harry?" Emma asked.

"Oh, I wasn't napping. I was playing with my magic," he said thoughtfully and looked over at his companions.

Hermione looked at him with her "We're going to talk about this when our parents are not around" patented look. Luna squeezed his hand and smiled.

"Did you learn anything?" Emma asked in curiosity.

"Not yet, but I hope to soon," Harry said with a mysterious smile on his face. He then stood and looked around. He then offered his hand to Luna, then Hermione and finally to Emma to help them stand, more out of courtesy than need.

They walked to the car and Emma noted again, Harry sat in the middle with Luna on his right and Hermione on his left. She turned in her seat and watched as Harry, once again, helped Luna and Hermione with their seat belts. "Harry, at the park, you sat on the end of the bench, but in the car you sit in the middle. Why is that?" she asked.

Harry took Hermione's hand and Luna's hand and looked at Emma with determination in his eyes, "If I am in the middle and we have an accident, this gives my magic a better chance of surrounding all of the people I care about so they don't... that is... so they're not hurt," he explained.

Emma nodded. She remembered how the Goblins had insisted on showing Harry the projection of Hermione's memories of the accident and when it came to the point Dan had covered Emma and Hermione with his own body; the first hug between Harry and Dan had been a tearful one on both sides, Dan had been reliving almost losing Emma and it had been the first time Harry called him, "Dad". For Harry, this one event, beyond all others, galvanized his feelings about Dan. Here was a man who would willingly give his own life to save the lives of his wife and child. This was a man who could be no more closer, morally, than his own father had been, not that he thought of it in those terms.

They drove to the practice and stopped. "I will be right back after checking on Dad," she said and got out, locking the doors with the remote.

Hermione waited until Emma had entered the building then leaned forward and looked at Luna, catching her eye. She then quickly glanced at Harry then Luna again and puckered her lips. Luna smiled and nodded.

"Harry," Hermione said softly and he turned to look at her, "you didn't have to give me a ring to prove to me how good a friend you are," he was about to interrupt her but she put a finger to his lips, "and I wanted you to know your my best friend," she said, removed her finger and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

Luna followed Hermione's example. "Harry," she said, "you and Hermione are my first real friends and you don't need to buy me things to show me you are my best friend." Luna, too, kissed him on the cheek. "Oh, and Harry?" she said and paused for him to look into her eyes, "I LOVE! the ring, too! It matches my new dress!"

"I love my ring too, Harry," Hermione said shyly. She then changed her train of thought, "What did you mean about playing with your magic earlier?" she asked, with honest curiosity.

"I was trying to see if I could separate your magics from one another when they intermingle with mine. I was just to the point of working on that when we had to leave," Harry said. He noticed motion outside the car. "Mum and Dad are coming," he said.

Dan and Emma entered the car. "Well, good news!" Dan exclaimed. "I was able to move my two patients tomorrow to Doctor Fahlstedt in Woking and we have a potential party interested in the practice."

"That's great news, Daddy!" Hermione exclaimed, wishing she had some way of repaying Harry for giving her more time with her parents. She turned and gave Harry an enthusiastic kiss on the cheek, "thank you, Harry," she whispered to him so softly only he could hear.

Harry turned to her and kissed her on the cheek, "if it wasn't for you and your parents, Hermione, I would be all alone in a big empty house," he whispered and kissed her once more. He turned to Luna to keep her from being left out, and kissed her on the cheek as well, "and our newest, bestest friend is here to share the good news with us!" he exclaimed. He then put an arm around each of the girls and pulled their heads down onto his shoulders.

Emma looked at the three of them. _If they were just two years older, I would be worried, _she thought. "So, how does take-away sound tonight? Italian, Chinese or something else?" she asked.

"Anything is fine with me," Dan said.

Hermione and Harry looked at Luna. "Luna, it is your choice tonight," Harry said with Hermione nodding in silent agreement.

"I have never had Italian food before. Come to think of it, I have never had Chinese food either. Of the two, would Italian be fine?" Luna asked.

"Italian would be great, Luna, dear," Emma said. "Now let's get our seat belts on so we can go."

They stopped by the Italian restaurant two miles from home and picked up a variety of selections from the menu. At first, Emma had tried to argue it was too much food until Hermione reminded her in a whispered conversation that Harry could place stasis charms on the food, preventing it from spoiling. After that, Emma allowed Harry to order significantly more than they would have normally.

Dan and Emma set dinner out buffet style and watched as Luna, and even Harry to some extent, explored an entirely new universe of culinary delights.

After dinner, Harry waited downstairs while the girls went upstairs to change into their pyjamas. He helped Dan put fresh bedding on the sofa bed. When they had finished, the girls were coming downstairs. They were whispering and giggling as they came downstairs. Harry was watching them as they walked down the stairs and had a dreamy smile on his face. Dan was watching Harry watch them walk down the stairs. "Pleasant thoughts, Harry?" Dan asked quietly. _Is he looking at the girls sexually or..._ he thought.

Harry looked over at Dan without the slightest hint of embarrassment. "I was just thinking how amazing it is to have a family that cares about me and friends who are really friends," he said.

Dan smiled and walked over to Harry and gave him a one-arm hug. "You're a son to be proud of, Harry. Never forget that," Dan said, looking down at him. Harry looked up to him with a smile. The girls were at the bottom of the stairs looking at Harry shyly.

"The bathroom is all yours, Harry," Hermione said with a slight pinkness to her cheeks. He smiled at the girls and got kissed on the cheek by each of them as he passed them to head up the stairs to get ready for bed. The two girls gave Dan and Emma each a hug before climbing into bed and under the covers.

Dan and Emma went into the kitchen to finish up the dinner dishes but were straining to hear Hermione's and Luna's conversation.

In a normal tone of voice, Luna asked, "So an X means a kiss and an O means a hug?"

"Yes," Hermione answered, "the O's represent your arms around him and the X's represent your pursed lips touching his pursed lips in a kiss."

"Oh! I can see it now!" Luna exclaimed.

"Shhhh... Luna... Mum and Dad are in the kitchen," Hermione whispered loudly.

-oOoOo-

Harry grabbed socks, underclothes and his pyjamas and headed into the bathroom to change. As he walked in, he noticed the bathroom was cleaner than he had ever seen it. _That explains why Hermione and Luna took so long – they must have cleaned it_, he thought. He decided to brush and floss his teeth three times to see if it kept his breath fresher in the morning. He stripped down and looked at himself in the mirror. For the first time in as long as he could remember, this was the first year he had not been hit, slapped, burned, degraded or forced to work to exhaustion. He noticed there were no new scars on his body. His arms and chest had begun developing somewhat and he was happy to be able to see without glasses. He had just gotten his clothes on when he heard a pop behind him. He turned to look and standing in front of him was one of the most bedraggled house elves Harry had ever seen.

"What happened to you, Little Fellow? You don't look like you're being taken care of at all," Harry said.

The house elf began crying and Harry could make out only about every third word, "Great... _sniffle_ Potter... _sniffle_ Dobby..." he made out. While Harry had just put on clean clothes, he knew this house elf was upset and he hated to see anyone crying.

Harry knelt down and was about to hug the elf to comfort it, but was concerned the house elf might be injured. "Are you hurt at all? Is there something I can help you with?" Harry asked.

"Dobby had heard The Great Harry Potter was great, but Dobby never imagined a wizard would show care for Dobby!" the elf said. "And The Great Harry Potter asks if he can help Dobby. Never has a wizard asked to help a house elf before! As if Dobby were an equal!" Harry didn't want to interrupt the elf because it looked to have more to say once it composed itself. "Dobby is not hurt more than Dobby should be. Dobby came to help The Great Harry Potter!"

Harry looked at the elf in some surprise. "Well, Dobby, what did you come to help me with?" Harry asked.

"Dobby has come to warn The Great Harry Potter. To protect him! The Great Harry Potter must not return to Hogwarts. There is great danger at Hogwarts!" Dobby exclaimed. He then looked at the door as it flew open. Both Hermione and Luna had their wands out and pointed at Dobby.

Harry was shocked at the tone Luna used to speak to Dobby. "What danger do you speak of, elf? Speak quickly!" she yelled.

"Dobby not know but that it is terrible things to happen," Dobby said, somewhat frightened.

"Did Uncle Lucius send you here, Dobby?" Luna asked more calmly.

Dobby slammed his head into the sink once. Twice. A third time. Harry grabbed Dobby's head to prevent him from hurting himself again.

"Dobby! Stop!" Luna shouted. She then looked at Harry. "A vassal family owns Dobby. His hurting himself means Uncle Lucius didn't send him. As I am heir to the House of Lovegood, I hold some sway over Dobby, but not enough it would seem. It is too bad, Daddy isn't here."

Dobby looked at the door again and snapped his fingers, disappearing from sight.

Dan came into the bathroom with a golf club in his hands. "What is all the shouting about?" Dan asked, looking for the source of the threat.

"My Uncle's house elf showed up to tell us about school next year, Uncle Dan, and we got excited," Luna said so innocently that butter wouldn't have melted in her mouth, putting her wand up the sleeve of her night shirt. Hermione saw this and mimicked her actions.

Dan lowered the golf club and looked at Harry and Hermione, who both looked somewhat nervous. He then looked piercingly at Luna. "What are you not telling me, Luna? I thought no one could get here unless Harry told them how to get here," Dan said.

"House elf magic is different from wizarding magic," Luna explained. "They can go to a person who is in a hidden place, but they cannot tell someone where they were. They cannot harm a witch or wizard directly and cannot, through inaction, allow a witch or wizard to be harmed. They must obey the orders of the members of their house and their head of house unless ordered to cause a witch or wizard harm. Dobby was trying to warn Harry of an unknown danger, but in house elf terms, that could be a leak in the pipes to a sudden rise in the dragon population," Luna explained.

"So he wasn't very specific then?" Dan asked.

"No. And he may not even know what the danger is, Uncle Dan," Luna said.

"Luna, you are truly a treasure," Dan said.

Luna walked over and gave Dan a hug, "Thank you, Uncle Dan!" she said, hugging him tightly.

"Now, you three get downstairs and climb into bed. I don't think there will be time for a movie tonight if you don't get down there," Dan said with a smile, kissing Luna on the top of the head.

The three of them practically ran down the stairs as Dan walked more sedately behind them and surreptitiously put the golf club near the front door.

-oOoOo-


	9. Hugging, The Morning After, and Plans

-o-AN-o-  
>A thank you to Texan-muggle for performing a final run-through on grammar and spelling.<br>Once you've finished reading this chapter, the answer to the obvious question is, "Yes, I know I am going to hell for that."  
>-o-AN-o-<p>

-oOoOo-

The girls pushed Harry into the middle of the bed. Hermione climbed over him to get to the other side then leaned over him to pull Luna onto the bed.

"Okay, you three. Mum and I are going to go upstairs. Please keep the volume down and go to sleep when the movie ends," Dan said then turned to Luna. "No more house elves after seven at night and none before ten in the morning and tell them a parent has to be present or they have to leave immediately. Those are the rules."

"Thank you, Uncle Dan. I will make sure they know," Luna said.

Dan smiled at her. Emma came over and gave all three of them a goodnight hug and kiss then took Dan's hand and the two of them went upstairs.

Hermione waited until she heard the bedroom door close before speaking, "Luna, I cannot believe you lied to my Daddy!" she whispered loudly.

"I didn't lie to him. I just didn't tell him all of the truth," Luna said.

"A lie of omission is still a lie," Hermione accused.

"Hermione, I even told Uncle Dan that Dobby was warning us of a danger but wouldn't say what the danger was and gave him examples of dangerous things. What didn't I tell him?" Luna asked.

Hermione replayed the conversation in her head three times before hanging her head in shame. "I'm sorry, Luna. You're right. You told Daddy everything," Hermione said, feeling foolish.

Luna leaned across Harry and pulled Hermione's face over so she could look directly into Hermione's eyes. Hermione looked up just as Luna leaned a bit further to quickly kiss her on the lips. "I forgive you, Hermione."

While Hermione was still a bit shocked, Harry asked the obvious question, "Luna, why do you keep kissing Hermione like that?"

"Because it wouldn't be proper of me to kiss her anywhere else yet," Luna explained, causing Hermione to blush, "but Auntie Emma promised Hermione and me kissing lessons but she didn't have time today and I need the practice," she explained. Hermione was about to say something when Luna kissed her again, lingering in the kiss for half a minute. "Yummy! Cinnamon toothpaste!" Luna exclaimed with a dreamy smile.

Hermione sat back, blushing furiously. Harry looked at her with a wry smile. "I didn't get a cinnamon toothpaste kiss," he said with a smile.

"Harry?" Luna asked. Harry turned to her was about to ask, "Yes" when she kissed him with her mouth slightly opened. Since he was about to talk, his mouth was also slightly opened. Her tongue briefly invaded his mouth and licked the tip of his tongue. He pulled back in surprise, but as he broke the kiss, he thought about how nice it had felt.

"Peppermint!" Luna said.

Harry had a goofy smile on his face and looked over at Hermione. Hermione looked at Harry shyly but nodded. She leaned in and gave Harry a kiss on the lips with her mouth slightly open. Harry followed Luna's example and slowly extended his tongue until he felt Hermione's tongue and gently and slowly licked around the tip of it and then withdrew.

Hermione had closed her eyes and she looked somewhat frozen in place with an expression of bliss on her face.

"I like the cinnamon kisses, too," Harry said shyly.

Hermione opened her eyes and looked at Harry and Luna. She blushed and smiled. "Peppermint is nice, too," she said. She then remembered something Harry had mentioned earlier. "So? Playing with your magic earlier?" she asked.

Harry looked at her with a somewhat quizzical expression then remembered what she was asking about. He looked at Hermione then turned and looked at Luna. "This just isn't going to work," he said so he crawled to the foot of the bed, untucked the blanket from the bed and sat so he could look at the two girls and still stay warm. "Scoot in so we can see each other," he said.

Hermione and Luna each scooted in so all three were touching their knees in the middle. Harry closed his eyes and began feeling for his magic when Hermione called his name.

"Harry, we aren't going to learn a thing if you just do it. Can you please tell us what it is you're doing while you're doing it?" Hermione asked.

"That sounds like a great idea, Hermione," he said, smiling at her. "The first thing we should do is hold hands," he explained and took Hermione's and Luna's offered hands. Hermione and Luna took hands as well.

"Then, I closed my eyes and felt for my magic," he said.

"What do you mean, felt for your magic?" Hermione asked.

"Well, I went looking for something that felt like my magic. For me it feels like water all around me. Almost like I am swimming in a big lake or something," he said. He opened his eyes and saw that Luna had her eyes closed and a little, dreamy sort of smile on her face. The contrast in Hermione was notable. She had her eyes clenched shut and a look of extreme concentration on her face.

"Hermione, open your eyes for a moment," Harry said softly. Hermione opened her eyes and looked at him. He gestured to Luna with his eyes and she looked over to Luna.

"Don't force it. Just close your eyes gently and reach out to your magic. When you find it, just nod. I will wait for you," Harry said.

Luna opened her eyes and looked at Hermione, "Hermione? Just kiss your magic, don't look for it with a beater bat," she said then closed her eyes once more, the smile returning to her face in moments.

Hermione nodded then closed her eyes as Harry instructed her to. In her mind's eye she saw a river flowing through a fertile valley, filled with lush greenery. She nodded.

"Now this part is kind of hard. I know what my magic feels like. I could feel your magics mingling with mine. Like they were not just rubbing into mine but like they were mixing or intertwining, like weaving a rope or something," Harry said, trying to find the right analogy.

"I think I can feel both of your magics with mine," Luna said, feeling a strong influence on her magic almost overwhelming another influence.

Hermione could feel a warm, encompassing magic that felt like it was just off to her right. She tried to relax a bit and could then feel another magic. This one was surrounding both her magic as well as the first one in its entirety. "I think I feel them. One is almost as big as mine. The other is just huge," she said, her eyes still closed.

"This afternoon when we were in the car, I was holding both of your hands and I wanted to see if I could concentrate on just one of the mingling magics. I thought very hard about Luna's hand and was focusing on her magic and was about to hug it when Mum and Dad came back," Harry said.

"Can we try that now?" Luna asked shyly.

"Yes, Luna," Hermione said gently, "but I think only one of us should do it at a time so we can see if it is working."

"Ladies first," Harry said.

"Would you like to go first, Luna?" Hermione asked, trying to hold on to the image of the river and beyond.

"Are you ready, Harry?" Luna asked.

"Yes," Harry said.

Luna concentrated on Harry's hand. On how it felt in hers. She could feel the callouses from him riding his broom and could feel the dry warmth. His hand was firmly holding her but not so tightly she couldn't pull hers away if she wanted to. _He is so thoughtful. I wonder if he even knows how thoughtful he is_, she thought. In her mind's eye, her magic was a waterfall miles high. Hermione's magic was a river her waterfall was falling into. Harry's magic was a vast ocean where the river and the waterfall met. She could see how the waterfall didn't mix with either but passed through them into the rocks of the earth. She redirected the water so it mixed with the sea.

Harry suddenly felt as if every inch of his body was being touched, like Luna's soft kiss earlier. If his eyes had not already been closed, he would have closed them.

Luna then slowly redirected the water from the sea to the river, thinking about how Hermione's hand felt. The soft, tender skin, with a slight, nervous sheen of perspiration. Luna could almost feel Hermione blushing at the contact of their knees and hands.

Hermione felt a sudden, butterfly-gentle touch everywhere on her body. It gradually increased in pressure until she felt as if soft, gentle hands were slowly languishing over her skin, lovingly touching her. Even the dull ache her mother told her was caused by her developing breasts was soothed by this gentle embrace. A soft moan escaped her lips.

Harry felt the hug subside but not go away completely. "Wow! You did it! Luna!" he exclaimed.

Hermione heard Harry, but the hug she was experiencing was too nice to stop thinking about. She began feeling tingly all over.

Luna slowly let the water mingling with the river flow back down into the earth once more and opened her eyes. "Did I do it right?"

The gentle touch Hermione had been experiencing gradually lessened to a whisper until it was gone. She opened her eyes and looked at Luna and Harry. "That feels so amazing," she whispered reverently. She shuddered and waited a few moments for the tingling to subside. She blinked a couple of times and then smiled at Luna. "Thank you, Luna. That was nice," she said.

"Yes, Luna. If that was anything like what I did to you before, I can see why you liked it so much. It felt like I was being hugged all over," Harry said, looking at Luna with a smile and squeezing her hand.

"Can I try it now?" Hermione asked excitedly.

Harry and Luna both nodded.

"So you just focused on Luna's hand?" Hermione asked.

"That's right," Harry said.

"I thought about how it felt and how soft and tender and warm your hand was and how gentle it was holding onto my hand," Luna said, a blush coming to her cheeks.

Hermione closed her eyes and felt her magic again. She saw that the river of her magic seemed to flow beside the magic on her right without mixing, as if the water was separated by an invisible barrier. She concentrated on how soft, warm and small Luna's hand felt in her own. The river on her right and her own river suddenly had a colour component added. Her own was red and the other was blue. She saw there was no mixture of colour, even where the two touched. She began to slowly let the red mix with the blue, forming a fuchsia-coloured froth. _Wait! That doesn't make sense... _she thought. She increased it mixing them until there was no longer any blue, only red and fuchsia._ Light!_ she thought in surprise.

Luna felt as if warm breath was gently flowing over her skin, as if someone was whispering softly just a hair's breadth from her skin. This slowly increased to being kissed everywhere. She began feeling tingly at the touch. The touching increased until she felt as if soft fingers were caressing her over every inch of her body. The tingling sensation grew stronger. She felt like she was vibrating from her centre out to her fingertips and toes. She moaned softly as the sensations intensified.

Hermione gradually reduced the mixing of the rivers until once more there were two distinct bands of water; one red and one blue.

Luna felt the touching subside back down to a warm whisper once more. The tingling began to lessen before it, too, faded away.

Hermione then thought about Harry's hand. She could feel the roughness and warmth of it, but she could also feel how tenderly he was holding her hand, as if her own hand was made of glass and he was afraid to break it. It was slightly bigger than her own hand and yet it felt like her hand fit in his perfectly. While her magic remained red, what she could only assume was Harry's magic changed to a brilliant green. While Luna's magic seemed to be a narrower width of river than her own, she could not sense where his magic ended. In her mind's eye, it disappeared at the horizon. She began slowly, mixing a bit of the red with the green. This time she expected the tinge of yellow that began at the border.

Harry felt as if someone was running their fingers just above his skin, not close enough to touch him, but just close enough to disturb the hair.

Hermione slowly increased the mix until the band of yellow was as wide as her own band of red, but there was still so much green.

Harry felt a steady but gentle increase until it felt like someone was running their fingertips over every inch of his body.

Hermione once more slowly reduced the mixture until the sea was once more green and there was no more yellow.

Luna felt the tingling finally subside. "That was so incredible, Hermione," Luna said, opening her eyes and looking at her.

Harry opened his eyes and looked at Hermione, squeezing her hand. "That was really amazing, Hermione." He then thought about what had happened at the will reading and mentioned it. "When I hugged all of you at the reading, I could only feel Susan's magic and your magics intermingling with mine. I couldn't feel Neville's magic mingling with mine at all. I thought it was because he and I are both boys, but you two can feel each others magics, right?" he asked.

Luna nodded.

"I can feel Luna's magic. I don't know if this is right or not, but when I looked at our magics in my mind, Luna's magic feels only a little smaller than mine," Hermione said.

"Daddy says that magical ability is usually age-related. The older you are, the more magic you have," Luna said.

"That makes sense," Hermione said, "considering a first year can't do fourth-year spells, even if they tried."

"Your turn, Harry," Luna said.

"Yes, Harry, give it a go," Hermione said.

"Who would like to be first?" Harry asked.

Hermione and Luna looked at one another shyly and giggled. "Let Luna go first," Hermione said just as Luna was about to say something. Instead Luna just smiled and squeezed Hermione's hand.

Harry closed his eyes and felt for his magic. He could see two small streams on either side of his lake. He concentrated on Luna's hand in his left hand. It was small and soft and warm. He could feel her pulse where his index and middle fingers touched the inside of her wrist. He went to the spigot in his mind and slowly opened the valve to flow into the stream that was glowing slightly more than the other.

Luna was trying to compare the feeling she received from Hermione to what she was experiencing now. While Hermione's magic felt like warm breath and then gentle touching, at first they were the same until the tingling began again. Where Hermione's magic had stopped at a gentle touch, Harry's continued, until her body felt like she was bathing in warm honey that touched her and caressed her. She moaned at the feeling. She felt the tingling intensify, building to a crescendo. The honey massaged her and continued running over her body until she felt herself tumbling over an edge, as if she were falling down her waterfall into the sea that was Harry. She called out "Sweet Morgana!" loudly as her senses intensified even though the sensation of honey all over her body ended, the tingling was still there.

Harry continued turning the spigot up until it was about halfway. He could feel Luna squeezing his hand and her knee pressed harder against his. Suddenly she cried out and then went limp. He turned the spigot off and opened his eyes in concern. Luna's head was resting on Hermione's shoulder. Her breathing was fast and shallow and little tremors were running through her body. Hermione was blushing beet red, with a smile on her face and holding Luna to her. Harry had not even felt Hermione take her hand away from his, so much was he concentrating on Luna.

"Is she okay? Did I hurt her?" Harry asked in a panic.

"She's fine, Harry and no, you didn't hurt her. You just made her feel really good," Hermione said, still blushing red.

They heard a door open and close upstairs. Harry and Hermione watched nervously as Emma came down the stairs in her robe and looked at the two of them sitting up in bed with Luna leaning against Hermione. She came all the way down next to the bed before sitting down next to Luna. "Is everything okay down here? I was worried someone had been hurt falling out of bed or something," she said, looking at Hermione, who was still blushing and Harry who looked a bit panicked and then to Luna who shifted herself from leaning on Hermione's shoulder to leaning on Emma's shoulder.

"Harry gives the best hugs!" Luna said dreamily. Emma raised an eyebrow at Luna, whose eyes were closed and she seemed on the verge of falling asleep.

"Is that so?" Emma asked rhetorically. She then looked at Harry and Hermione. "Do tell," she said.

"Well, I told you about the magical hugging?" Harry asked. Emma nodded. "Well, I was seeing if I could hug just one person instead of a whole group of people," Harry said and paused.

"And?" Emma asked.

"Well, I was explaining to Luna and Hermione what I did and how I was doing it and gave them an opportunity to try it," he explained.

"Yes?" Emma asked.

"We let Luna go first and she did it really well. Then Hermione went and she did it well, too. It felt really nice," Harry said with a smile, remembering what it felt like to be hugged like that.

"And then what happened?" Emma asked. _Goodness! I am not sure I want an answer to that question, _she thought.

"Then I hugged Luna," Harry said, hanging his head, "and I think I hurt her."

Emma looked at Hermione, who was still blushing. She then looked down at Luna who was now snoring softly. She then looked at Harry, who was still looking down at the bed. "Harry, I can say with some certainty that you didn't hurt her. Likely she cried out because you made her feel really good," Emma said with a smile, trying her hardest not to laugh.

"Really?" Harry asked, looking up, his voice cracking mid-word.

That was too much for Emma. She giggled a bit then stopped when she saw the hurt look on Harry's face. "Harry, I am not laughing at you, so please don't be upset. What happened to Luna is just a part of growing up." She then turned to Hermione. "I take it you didn't get your hug?" Emma asked.

Hermione shook her head. "Not yet," she said._ But I am going to get mine!_ she thought with determination.

"Harry, I am sure you realize the trust Dad and I have in you. Please don't go too overboard with this hugging," Emma said looking at Harry, who swallowed nervously and nodded. Emma then turned to Hermione and got an evil smile on her face. "Try not to wake your father when you get your hug," she said. Emma wondered in amusement if Hermione had any blood left in the rest of her body considering how red her face was.

Emma gently laid Luna down on the bed and kissed Hermione and Harry on their cheeks. "Sleep sweet, children," she said and walked back upstairs.

Hermione waited until she heard the bedroom door open and close again then took both of Harry's hands and moved so both of her knees were touching his knees. "I'm ready," she said resolutely, looking in Harry's eyes but still blushing furiously.

"Are you sure, Mione? I don't want to hurt you," Harry said.

"I want my hug, Harry," she said adamantly, then her voice softened, "please? I promise you didn't hurt Luna. You just made her feel really, really good," she said.

"If you're sure," he said, still with concern and fear mingled in his voice.

"Please, Harry?" she asked plaintively.

Harry nodded and closed his eyes. He repositioned his hands so his index and middle fingers were touching the insides of her wrists. He could feel the warmth of her knees against his. He felt her trembling slightly but felt the soft skin of her hands relaxing in his, trusting him to not hurt her. He still saw two streams of magic next to his but one of them now glowed brighter than the other. He went to his spigot and gently turned the knob a bit to get a trickle of water flowing into the glowing stream.

Hermione felt a warm mist descend over her body, all over her skin, into every pore. She could even taste a sweetness to it, like the first mist of Spring. It was accompanied by a soft, warm breeze which flowed across the fine hair all over her body. It tingled as it slowly moved across her.

Harry turned the knob a bit more until it was about a quarter on.

Hermione felt the tingling increase as soft, moist lips kissed her everywhere. The tingling grew. She felt a tension growing in her as she felt trickles of water run over her skin, and what felt like the tips of wet tongues following behind to lap up the water. She moaned at the sensation as the water ran over places that had only recently awakened.

Harry turned the knob slowly up until it was halfway again. He could feel Hermione's knees spreading apart. He felt her feet come together and her toes touch his ankles as she put her feet flat against one another. He could feel her tensing, her hands gripping his tighter.

She felt mouths running over her, drinking up the water running over her body like she was standing beneath a tropical waterfall and on top of a geyser. Warm water rushed at her centre, building a pressure within her, intensifying the tingling coursing through her body. Suddenly her mind was filled with a detonation of light. She fell back and muffled her scream into the pillow.

Harry opened his eyes as he felt Hermione grip his hands harder and pulled him forward. This had the unintended consequence of Harry falling onto Hermione, his face hitting her now-damp knickers. Although significantly muffled, he could hear her scream again. He quickly sat up and looked at her with wide eyes as she shuddered on the bed, breathing rapidly. Periodically her entire body would tense, her back arching and then relaxing once again. This happened four or five times before she lay still, a small smile playing across her face.

"Are you okay, Hermione? I didn't mean to fall on you," Harry said in concern, crawling out of the bed, tucking the blanket in and crawling up behind her.

"Wonderful!" she exclaimed softly.

Harry gently pushed her over to the middle of the bed. He then got up, pushed Luna over towards Hermione and shut off the light on that side of the sofa. He walked back around the bed, got in under the covers and turned the light off on his side. He scooted up against Hermione and pulled Luna still closer and put Hermione's left arm over Luna's left shoulder. He could already feel Hermione's deep slow breathing of sleep.

"Sleep sweet, Luna. Sleep sweet, Hermione," Harry whispered, then cuddled up behind Hermione. _I really hope I didn't hurt them,_ he thought.

-oOoOo-

"Honey Bear?" Emma asked as she climbed back into bed and curled up against a pleasantly sleepy Dan.

"Yes, Cuddle Cat?" Dan responded sleepily.

"I think Harry is going to need The Talk tomorrow morning," she said, kissing Dan on the nose.

Dan opened his eyes and was now fully awake. "You have my complete attention," he said.

"He was showing the girls how to magically hug and managed to give Luna an orgasm with it. If I am not mistaken, he is giving Hermione one right now," she said.

Dan threw the covers off and was sitting up to go downstairs and do battle when Emma used leverage and weight to pull him back down. "And where do you think you're going?" she asked.

"To stop him. She is too young to be touched like that," he said in full hyper-protective father mode.

"Daniel Robert Granger," Emma said, letting him know she would accept no argument, "the only reason I am here instead of down there giving them all The Talk is that he didn't do anything more than hold their hands. This will, however, be the only time this happens before all three of them get The Talk tomorrow morning. I think we need to chat with them as a group first and then divide and conquer," she explained. "After all, I believe it was you who said something about two years. I somehow think we don't have that long, although I would like to instil in them the desire to wait to make the ultimate demonstration of love until they're married. Would I prefer they wait five years to get intimate? Yes. But I don't think that is going to happen. I think it will be more important to curb Luna and Hermione than Harry. He thought he had hurt Luna at first until both Hermione and I explained otherwise," Emma said.

"Cuddle Cat, if this happens with either of the babies you're carrying now, please do me a favour," Dan said.

"What's that, Honey Bear?" she asked.

"Wait until the morning, when I have had a full-night's sleep. I don't think I am going to get another moment's rest thinking about this now," Dan said, concern clearly in his voice.

Emma rolled over on top of him and straddled him. "I think I have a way of making my Honey Bear sleepy," she said. True to her words, after only two hours of energetic exercise, Dan slept the rest of the night with a smile on his face.

-oOoOo-

Dan awoke to the blaring of the alarm clock. He reached over, slapped the snooze button and looked at the time. _Half seven. Lovely._ The alarm blared again. He slapped it once more. _Seven forty-five. Time to get moving and grab a quick shower._ He extricated himself from Emma, turned the alarm off and padded into the loo to take care of business. He turned the water on, waited for it to warm up and stepped into the shower. He stood there for a time, letting the warmth soak into his head, feeling the water beat on his face. There was a cold draft for a moment and then a cold body pressed up against him.

"Wash my back?" Emma asked seductively.

Once the two finished in the shower, they got dressed and ready for the day. _Half eight. Great. Just great._ Dan thought sarcastically. He opened the bedroom door and the aroma of breakfast cooking filled his senses. Emma, right behind him, looked at him as he turned to her and raised an eyebrow. The slowly walked down the stairs and saw that Hermione was spooned in behind Luna, holding her tightly with her face buried into Luna's neck.

They both looked into the kitchen to see a showered and dressed Harry running around the kitchen preparing various pieces of breakfast. In addition to what appeared to be two or three pounds of bacon, there was a plate piled with scones, a salver of clotted cream, and a platter of omelets sitting on the oven door being kept warm. Harry had also apparently made an apple and berry pie that was cooling on the kitchen ledge. He had just set the platter of bacon down on the ledge when he looked up and noticed Emma and Dan watching him. He smiled shyly and waved, holding his finger in front of his lips and pointing at the sleeping forms of Luna and Hermione. Emma came into the kitchen and opened her arms to him. He rushed over and gladly returned the hug.

"Good morning, Harry. I see you you've been up for some time and have already made breakfast," Emma said quietly.

"I hope you like it. Since you and Dad have plans this afternoon, I was going to make dinner as well, if you didn't mind," Harry said nervously, wringing his hands. He turned quickly and moved the platter of omelets to the kitchen ledge as well.

"Harry? Is something the matter?" Dan asked. "You seem nervous, Son," Dan said.

Harry looked at Dan then immediately turned around to move the platter of scones to the ledge. He moved the salver to the ledge then turned to Emma. "Mum, could you wake Hermione and Luna for me? They... well... I didn't want to disturb them or startle them... especially... well..." Harry floundered.

"Certainly, Harry," Emma said, walking past Dan and making faces at him to indicate he needed to figure out what was going on.

Dan walked into the kitchen and was about to ask Harry what was wrong when Harry looked up at him. "Dad?" he asked quietly.

"Yes, Harry?" Dan responded.

"Can we talk? About... you know... stuff?" Harry asked, a slight blush rising to his cheeks.

"Now or after breakfast?" Dan asked, following Harry's gaze.

Harry was watching Emma wake up Hermione and Luna. When the girls woke, they both hugged Emma then looked over at Harry and smiled at him shyly, blushing bright red. Harry turned to see Dan looking back at him. "Maybe a bit of both?" Harry looked at Dan hopefully.

"Cuddle Cat? Harry and I are going to go for a quick walk around the block while the girls get showered and dressed," Dan said and pointed Harry at the kitchen door.

"Yes, Dear," Emma replied.

Harry walked out of the door and waited for Dan, who came out a moment later. Neither of them said a word until they closed the garden gate.

"Dad? I'm worried. I... Luna and Hermione... well... I was hugging their magic last night and Mum and Hermione said I didn't hurt Luna, then Hermione wanted me to hug her too and she tensed up then screamed into the pillow and told me she felt really good. I don't know if they were just trying to not hurt my feelings because I hurt them really badly or... and when I woke up this morning, I... that is... I think I must have hurt Luna really bad because there was some blood on her night shirt, but she was asleep and didn't seem to be hurting this morning and..." Harry was crying by the time he had finished.

_Oh shit!_ Dan pulled Harry into a one-armed hug and continued walking down the street with him. "Harry, let's start at the beginning. Mum and Hermione were right. You did not hurt or injure Luna," Dan began but was interrupted.

"But the blood...!" Harry nearly shouted.

"Is a natural part of girls when they grow up, Harry," Dan said calmly, cutting off Harry's hysterics.

"Really?" Harry asked incredulously, not sure if he believed Dan or not.

"Son, this is so important, we, that is you, Hermione, Luna, Mum and I, are going to go through some books together and talk through all of this. It isn't something any of you should be embarrassed about and Mum and I want you to know that if any of you have questions or feelings about any of it that you can come talk to us. We don't want you three to be afraid of this but we do want you all to be careful. And no, you did not hurt Luna. I am certain of that. The blood you saw is likely due to her monthly cycle," Dan said, and took a few minutes to explain just how normal this was for young women and how it wasn't anything to tease Luna or Hermione over.

"Dad, I would never do anything to hurt either Luna or Hermione. They're my best friends," Harry said earnestly.

"That's good, Son. Mum and I had a talk last night and we decided it is time you and the girls know a lot more about the differences between boys and girls and how intimacy works. We want you to be careful and not rush into anything your feelings might be telling you to do. Do you understand?" Dan asked.

Harry nodded. A moment later he shook his head, then a moment later shrugged.

"Well, that was an honest response," Dan said with a wry smile.

Harry smiled back at him, then looked at his shoes. "I guess I think I know what you might be talking about. Like how nice it is to get goodnight kisses?" Harry asked.

"Well, that's part of it. I think we should all talk as a family, Luna included since her Mum isn't here for her, Mum has chosen to take that responsibility. Then I think there are things the girls should talk about themselves and there are things we should talk about, just you and I," Dan explained.

Harry nodded then looked up at Dan. "Dad?" Harry stopped and asked.

Dan stopped and looked at Harry. "Yes, Son?" he asked.

Harry wrapped his arms around Dan. "Thank you, Dad," he said.

Dan patted Harry's back. "You're welcome, Son. And thank you for coming to me. I hope I can always be there for you."

Harry looked up at him and smiled.

"Well, let's get back and eat some of that wonderful breakfast you made us before it gets too cold," Dan said with a smile.

Harry pulled out of the hug and smiled. "I put warming charms on all of the dishes so we wouldn't have to eat cold scones. Yuck!" Harry exclaimed with a scrunched face.

"That was very thoughtful, Son," Dan said, as they once more entered the garden gate.

-oOoOo-

Emma woke the girls and watched as they looked at Harry in the kitchen next to Dan. Both girls smiled at him and blushed. She heard Dan call out that he and Harry were going to go for a quick walk. She looked up at them and smiled. "Yes, Dear," she called back to him and watched the two of them walk out the kitchen door.

"Girls, why don't you two get up and head upstairs and get into the shower. We can chat while you wash each others hair," she said.

Luna threw off the covers and saw the reddish-brown spot on the front of her night shirt and quickly pulled the blanket back and began crying into her hands. "Luna, Honey, whatever is the matter?" Emma asked, knowing the likely answer.

Hermione, knowing the answer and unable to not reach out to Luna, pulled Luna into a hug. "Luna, that has happened to me a couple of times now. There is nothing to be ashamed of," she said, then thought about how old she was when it first happened and leaned her head down to Luna, "Is this the first time this has happened to you?" Hermione asked.

Luna shook her head. "This is the fourth time this has happened," Luna said, sniffling and wiping her eyes. "Daddy said it was normal but he got all red-faced when I asked him to take me to St. Mungo's," she explained. She then looked up in horror at Hermione. "You don't think Harry saw me like this, do you?" Luna asked with despair in her voice.

Hermione looked into Luna's eyes. "I don't think so, Luna. But even if he did, what do you have to worry about? Harry wouldn't think any less of you," she said earnestly.

"But he might think he caused it. He was so worried last night about hurting us," Luna explained.

"Maybe that's what Daddy is talking to him about right now. Letting him know it's perfectly natural. Or maybe they're just talking about how cute you look when you're asleep," Hermione said with a smile. She watched as Luna's face transformed into a shy smile. "Why don't you go upstairs with Mum and get started on your shower and I will clean the bedding and come up and join you?" Hermione asked.

Luna kissed Hermione on the cheek and hopped out of bed, taking Emma's hand.

Emma looked at Hermione with a raised eyebrow, _Just how does she think she's going to clean the bedding?_ She thought as Hermione took her wand from beneath her pillow and pointed it at the sheets and blanket. The dried blood vanished as Luna pulled Emma towards the stairs. "Useful," Emma said, then turned and walked Luna up the stairs to get showered.

Hermione pulled the sheet back and cleaned the mattress the same way._ Thank goodness for cleaning charms and Goblin wards!_ Hermione thought.

She walked up the stairs and heard the water running and Luna and Emma chatting. When she entered the bathroom, Emma was sitting at the dressing table talking with Luna. "...am sure Hermione can clean them too, Luna Dear. And if she can't, we can go later today and replace them," Emma was saying. Emma saw Hermione in the mirror and held up Luna's night shirt and knickers. Hermione expected this and cleaned them as well. She then set her wand down on the dressing table, took off her night shirt and knickers and entered the shower.

Emma closed the door in the event Dan and Harry came home and between herself and Hermione managed to convince Luna what she was experiencing was, in fact, normal.

Hermione then showed Luna how to use the hand sprayer and how it adjusted from a fine mist to a pounding rain. She helped Luna wash and Luna reciprocated, all the while Emma talked to them about what this meant in the developing stages of a girl growing up.

The girls turned the water off. Emma handed them towels and the girls stepped out and dried off. Hermione showed Luna the charm for staying clean and fresh each month. They then wrapped themselves in their towels and went and got dressed in Hermione's bedroom. Emma heard the kitchen door open and heard Dan's and Harry's voices as the door closed.

"Come on, girls. The boys are back and breakfast will get cold," Emma said as Hermione's bedroom door opened. Both Hermione and Luna were dressed in black capri pants with black shirts with glitter-decorated unicorns and "Best Friends" above the unicorns and "Forever !" below them.

Emma couldn't help but smile at their attire. "Very sharp looking, Girls," Emma said.

"Thanks, Mum," Hermione said and looked at Luna shyly then looked at Emma. "Mum? While we're talking about growing up, you said something about kissing lessons," Hermione said.

"And Uncle Dan said we couldn't practice with Harry until talking to you first," Luna said, then looked at Hermione, "Actually, Uncle Dan said Hermione couldn't practice with Harry but didn't put any restriction on me. I just didn't want to practice with Harry without Hermione being able to practice with him too. It just wouldn't be fair!" Luna exclaimed.

Emma looked at Luna then at Hermione then at Luna again. "Thank you, Luna, for being so unselfish about that," she said and thought for a moment. "We need to go to Gringott's again today then we can go to St. Mungo's to visit Sirius and to get Harry a check-up and I need to talk to Bonnie. If we get back in time, and if I can tear you two away from Harry for an hour, we can talk about it this evening before movie time starts. How does that sound?" Emma asked.

"Harry can't join us?" Luna asked.

"Luna, Dear, I... No. Not tonight, in any event. We're first going to talk about oral hygiene, then we'll talk about overall hygiene and then we'll actually talk about kissing," she said.

"Oral hygiene as in brushing and flossing?" Luna asked.

Emma was surprised. "Yes, Luna. Have you been brushing and flossing?" she asked.

"My Mum taught me how to brush and floss when I was five, Auntie Emma. Mum told me how important it was to brush and floss after each meal and just before bed and first thing in the morning," Luna said and looked over at Hemione. "Do you brush and floss five times a day, too?"

"Yes, and," Hermione said then turned her attention to Emma, "I taught Harry how to brush and floss this past November and he does the same as Luna and I, although after Healer Wilkinson gave him that tooth repair potion, his teeth don't hurt him and he has a much nicer smile," she explained, blushing slightly at the end with a little smile.

"And Hermione likes cinnamon toothpaste, while Harry uses peppermint toothpaste," Luna said helpfully.

Emma looked at Hermione with a raised eyebrow and looked back to Luna. "Luna, how do you know what flavour toothpaste they use?" _Do I really want to know the answer to that?_

"When I kissed Harry, his tongue tasted like peppermint and Hermione's tongue tasted like cinnamon," Luna explained.

"Luna!" Hermione exclaimed in a scandalized tone.

Emma looked at Hermione, who was looking at the floor; her face was tomato red. _Be careful what you ask for, I guess,_ Emma thought. "Were you practising?" Emma asked.

"Oh no!" Luna exclaimed, "That would have upset Uncle Dan and I never want Uncle Dan upset at Hermione or me. We were just kissing each other good night," Luna said.

"And you tasted their tongues?" Emma asked.

"Well, their mouths were open and the books I've read on kissing always said that if the other person's mouth was open that it was an invitation to deepen the kiss," Luna said, a little smile on her face as she looked over at a still-blushing Hermione. "I think I took advantage of Hermione a little bit because I think her mouth was opened in surprise, but she seemed to enjoy it."

Emma couldn't help but let a giggle out, "Luna, you've read books on kissing techniques but not on the development of your own body? Well, we can discuss this further this afternoon," she said as Dan called up from the bottom of the stairs.

"We're back, Ladies," Dan called up.

Emma, Hermione and Luna came down the stairs. Harry and Dan motioned for them to sit. Dan prepared Emma's plate and sat it in front of her. Likewise Harry prepared plates for Luna and Hermione. Dan prepared his own plate and sat next to Emma. Harry prepared his plate and sat between Luna and Hermione. Both girls immediately kissed Harry on the cheeks and took his hands.

"Girls, feeding Harry ice cream is acceptable. Please let him eat his own breakfast," Dan said pointedly, receiving embarrassed nods from both girls.

"Harry, thank you for making breakfast," Emma said, "it smells wonderful."

"Yes, thank you, Harry. You've outdone yourself," Dan said in acknowledgement of the variety of food Harry prepared.

"Thank you, Harry," the girls chorused and kissed him on his cheeks again.

Emma took a bite of her omelet. The explosion of flavour in her mouth was overwhelming. The mushrooms, chicken, cheese and tomatoes provided an amazing combination she had not had before.

Emma's moan of pleasure startled Dan. "Everything okay, Honey?" he asked, looking over at her. She had her eyes closed and was slowly chewing the bite of omelet, letting the flavour linger in her mouth.

She swallowed, opened her eyes and looked at Harry. "Harry, this is fantastic. Where did you find all of the ingredients?"

"Which one did you get, Mum?" Harry asked.

Dan took a bite of his omelet. His was ham, Swiss cheese, mushrooms and sweet onions. "Wow!" he exclaimed when he finished chewing and swallowing.

"The chicken," Emma said.

"Oh. I used some of the chicken dish from the Italian last night, added some cheese, canned tomatoes and mushrooms. The ham ones I made from stuff that was in the kitchen," Harry said.

Dan looked at Emma, then looked at Harry. "Harry, do you remember when I said Mum and I would do most of the cooking?" Dan asked.

Harry looked down at his plate, "I'm sorry you don't like it, Dad."

"Harry, this breakfast is one of the best I have had in a long time, no offence to you, Dear," Dan said.

"None taken, Love. Harry, I have to agree. You've made a wonderful meal. As good as Chef Singh," Emma said.

Harry looked up with a smile, "Really?"

"Yes, Harry. What I was going to say is you can cook any time you want to," Dan said. "I am not saying you have to cook every meal, but this is wonderful."

Both girls also expressed their pleasure with Harry by kissing him again. And again. And again every five minutes or so.

They finished their breakfast. "Harry, I think we're going to have to wait on the pie until dinner, as I am full," Dan said. Emma nodded, as did both girls.

Harry just smiled. "That would be fine, Dad. I am glad everyone enjoyed breakfast. No one has ever complimented me on my cooking before," he said, closing his eyes and savouring the feeling of being full and surrounded by family.

Emma looked stricken. _He made those... those... those... **people** every meal they ate since he was five years old,_ she thought, screaming in her mind. She quickly schooled her features, but Dan had already seen her expression and it mirrored his own feelings, though he hid it well.

"Well, then, Harry, you have honoured us by allowing us to be the first people to be honest with you about your skills in the kitchen. I am sure you could make quite a name for yourself if you wanted to become a master chef," Dan said honestly.

Harry opened his eyes and looked at Dan, "Thank you, Dad, Mum."

"You three should run upstairs and get ready to go. Dad and I will take care of putting away breakfast," Emma said.

"Oh, no need, Mum. I can put stasis charms on all of it so it will stay fresh for weeks," Harry said. He stood, pulling his wand from his sleeve and pointed it at the food. All of the dishes stopped steaming, turned a silvery grey then shrank and formed a small white cube on the kitchen ledge. He put his wand away and reached his hands down to the girls. "Shall we go brush our teeth so we can go?" he asked. By way of an answer, the girls took his hands and pulled him towards the stairs.

Emma turned to Dan and cried into his shoulder. Dan comforted her. "He's never going back there, Love. They may not have entirely deserved what Fate did, but Harry now has us and we love him," he said.

She sat up and nodded, wiping her eyes with her napkin, "I know," she said then looked at Dan. "How do you feel about making Harry Hermione's guardian in the magical world?" she asked.

"Well, since a guardian is required and we didn't choose whomever that is now, it means we don't even know who it is or if they have her best interests at heart. I think we need to talk to the Goblins, but I don't see it as being a bad thing," Dan said.

Emma nodded, then smiled in embarrassment, "Look at me. I must look horrid," she said.

"You're always beautiful to me, Love, though likely you should go wash your face with cold water and brush," Dan said. He stood and offered his hand to Emma. "Shall we, Love?"

Emma took his hand and the two of them went upstairs to get ready to face the day.

-oOoOo-

-o-AN-o-

Yes, the twist of lime included in this chapter is realistic. I tried to keep it tasteful and somewhat understated.

My apologies to those of you who think not much is happening per chapter. In the last seven chapters, my Betas have chopped about ten thousand words, on average, from each chapter because I was, in their words, too frequently climbing into the characters' heads and providing too many background thoughts. I am making attempts to speed the time frame up a bit per chapter, but all too frequently, I read stories, even by excellent authors, who seem to gloss over things I want more detail about.

-o-AN-o-


	10. Truth, Pain and Redemption

-o-AN-o-

Once more I must acknowledge the contributions of texan-muggle to improving upon the grammar, spelling, punctuation and overall polish of this chapter.

I would like to thank Claire for providing primary editorial oversight and plot hole patching.

-o-AN-o-

-oOoOo-

Albus was in a rare mood: incoherently rageful.

He had gone to Gringotts to talk with the Potter account manager, only to be told the account manager had no reason to discuss anything with him. When Albus had pointed out he was Harry's magical guardian, he was informed, in no uncertain terms, that as Harry was now Lord Potter, he no longer legally required a guardian as he was considered an adult.

When he attempted to access his own vaults he was informed that, as House Dumbledore was a vassal house to the House of Potter, all of his assets had been seized as a result of investigations conducted by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and by the appointed representatives of The People as specified by treaty with The Crown. The results clearly demonstrated he had violated the terms of one or more treaties with The People and that his assets would be surrendered to the injured parties. Although he had broken no wizarding laws, per se, he was now considered persona non-grata to the Goblins as of midnight. Should he enter Gringotts or any property held or protected by The People or Gringotts, he would be seized immediately and, should he escape, The People would make a demand directly to The Crown for his arrest and return.

Steelfist had watched this interaction between the Concierge and the Chief Warlock. Steelfist didn't think Dumbledore was evil, just incompetent and stupid when it came to the well-being of children in his custody.

Albus left the bank and returned to his office. He had not expected the company waiting for him. Kingsley Shacklebolt and Alastor Moody were waiting in his office.

"My friends, it is so good to see both of you," Albus said with a false smile. In all truth, he could use a fire whiskey and a lay-down at the moment. The reply he received simply helped in reinforcing those needs.

"Save the false welcome for those who would believe it," Shacklebolt said. "I am here to resign from the Order and to explain to you the consequences of any future interference with the Auror Corps."

"But Kingsley..." Albus began but was cut off.

"Save it. I have been lied to and it may have cost my best friend and his wife their very lives and it certainly cost their son nine and half years of his life, so don't even try to make amends with me, Albus. There was a time when I valued your friendship, your leadership and your mentoring. I don't know what happened to you, but you have failed me for the last time. If I discover you are attempting to gather information through members of the Auror Corps, I will take you down whatever it takes. You are no longer inviolate, Albus. Your failures with the Potters, and likely the Longbottoms, cost you far more than just my loyalties to you," Kingsley said, his fury barely restrained.

"I am sorry you feel that way, Kings..." Albus began but was cut off by his oldest friend.

"Oh just shut up, Albus and for once in your life listen to others," Alastor said. "I asked you a number of times if you had checked on the boy and I took you at your word when you told me he was safe. You told me he was protected by Lily's family and only after the reading of the will of one of the finest rising stars in the Auror Corps do I find out the only man I ever trusted with my back other than Shack here was lying to me likely every time I asked him a question. For Godric's sake, Albus, do you have any idea the damage you have caused? Do you realise the one person who could bring you down from every position of responsibility you have is the one person you sentenced to a life of torture, starvation and emotional scarring he may never get past? Do you realise there are political groups within the ICW and the Wizengamot that are so thoroughly in his pocket that if he snapped his fingers, you would be out of both organizations without so much as a by-your-leave? Do you realise he holds seventy-five percent of the Hogwarts Board of Governors seats?"

"Alastor, I have my reasons..." Albus began, getting cut off once more by Minerva entering his office.

"Is the old bastard...oh, I see he has finally decided to appear. So good to see you, Albus," Minerva said.

"Yes, Minerva, he's here and Shack and I were almost finished," Moody said, turning back to Albus.

Minerva took a seat next to Moody and waited for him to finish speaking.

"Albus, we've been friends for nearly eighty years, and in all that time, I have only ever seen you blunder this badly once before and even then you never once made amends for it, believing that if everyone forgot about it, all would be fine once more. Let me tell you this time will be different. You have single-handedly managed to annoy, anger or enrage every single member of the Wizengamot. For Merlin's sake, man, if Lucius Malfoy were to walk in there today and call for your head on a pike, it is likely he would be able to get a vote called on it," Moody said.

"Alastor, I don't think it is all that bad," Albus said, trying to hide the ball of fear growing in his stomach.

"Think? Really? Albus, no matter what you might 'think', reality is about to painfully intrude on the utopian ideal running around in your head. And if you try Legilimency on me one more time, old friend, I will pluck your eyes out the old fashioned way. I would suggest you contritely apologise to young Harry, beg for forgiveness and hope he allows you to retain your position of headmaster through his years at Hogwarts. Failing that, from what I understand from Amelia the Goblins told her, you won't have a pot to pee in or a window to fling it out of as they've seized your assets for treason to your House's House," Moody said. He then stood, and Shack stood with him. "I, too, as of now, am resigning from the Order. Let me reiterate Shack's not-at-all-empty threat, Albus. Should you attempt to subvert, commit espionage or otherwise attempt to gain any toe-hold or unpublished information from any member of the Auror Corps, you will be arrested and we will have veritaserum leaking out your pores in an effort to determine your level of involvement. Based on my discussions with Amelia and Shack, the Goblins are out for your blood if you step even a wands-breadth over the line. Make no further mistakes, Albus. These are the last words you will ever hear from me as your friend while you live," Moody said, then turned to Minerva. "Thank you for letting us in Minerva. We hope to see you next week at the Ministry."

Moody and Shacklebolt left Albus' office. Minerva counted to twenty to give them an opportunity to reach the bottom of the stairs.

When the two men left and Minerva didn't say anything, he thought he was safe. "Well, that could have gone better," he said.

"_Eighteen... nineteen... twenty..."_ Minerva counted then stood and walked over to Albus, towering over him.

"Headmaster Dumbledore, I am here on official business as my responsibility as Deputy Headmistress requires, and I am here on a personal note," Minerva said. "Business first. There is a meeting of the Board of Governors called for Monday evening at eight. Your attendance is required and a transcript of the meeting shall be taken, along with memory copies stored for pensieve review. Should you fail to appear for the meeting, it shall be presumed you have resigned your position as Headmaster of Hogwarts, at which time all personal property of yours shall be packed and left at the gates, outside the wards," she said. "Do you understand your attendance is required and the consequences should you fail to attend?" she asked.

"Now Minerva, I am sure..." Albus began but was cut off.

"The question requires a 'yes' or 'no' answer, Headmaster and is not open to discussion," she said.

Albus frowned at her officious demeanour. "Very well, then. Yes, I understand my attendance is required and I understand the consequences should I fail to attend. I will, however, be attending the meeting," Albus said.

"Excellent. I shall inform the Board of Governors of Hogwarts and send them a memory of this discussion for pensieve review," she said, then began silently counting. "_One... two... three... four... five... six... seven... eight... nine... ten..." _she thought, then looked at Albus once more.

"You indicated you also had something personal you wished to discuss?" Albus asked.

SLAP! Minerva's hand lashed out and hit Albus hard enough to swing his head around and knocked his glasses clear across the office. It also had the unintended consequence of causing the few remaining prior headmaster portraits who were still dozing to awaken. The ones already awake and watching the events unfolding in the office sucked in their collective painted air.

Minerva looked at Albus, seemingly in concern. "Are you all right, Albus?" she asked.

Albus felt his jaw for a moment and waited for the stars in front of his eyes to go away before he looked at Minerva. "I think so. I certainly wasn't expecting..."

SLAP! Her hand lashed out again, knocking Albus completely out of his chair onto the floor. She walked around his desk and looked at him laying on the floor. He pushed himself up and grabbed for his chair. She reached a hand down to him to help him up. He looked at it warily, then took it and steadied himself before sitting down once more in his chair. She walked back around to the other side of the desk.

"I'm sorry, Albus. I won't do that again," Minerva said.

"Thank you, Minerva," he said.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

He looked around and saw the glint of his glasses across the room. "Other than the pain in my face and jaw and my glasses apparently broken, I think... " He began.

Minerva picked up the Charms textbook from Albus' desk and hit him in the side of the head as hard as she could. He tumbled out of his chair and fell heavily to the floor.

She walked over to where he lay and stood over him.

"I... thought... you said... you weren't going to... hit me again," Albus wheezed out.

"Oh no. My apologies if you misconstrued what I said. That seems to happen around you frequently lately. I meant I would not slap you again. It was beginning to hurt my hand even with the numbing charm in place. Now, do you have any idea what you have done which might upset me so much that I would be willing to do this to my friend and confidant of nearly seventy years?" Minerva asked.

"Something to do with young Mister Potter, no doubt," Albus said, regaining his equilibrium.

"Oh. 'Something' to do with Mister Potter? And do you know what it might be," she asked mildly.

"I imagine it has to do with his treatment by his relatives," Albus said, crawling across the floor, attempting to get back to his chair.

"You 'imagine', do you? I spoke to Lord Potter's account manager after the reading of his father's will. I explained to the account manager my role in his placement with, as I believe I told you, 'the worst kind of muggles' and the account manager thanked me for my honesty and then showed me some memories Lord Potter had provided him to show to anyone involved in placing him with those vermin. I sat watching the memories of his treatment for three days, Albus. The only reason House McGonagall is not destitute at this moment is because Lord Potter's account manager believed me when I told him I honestly believed the 'protections' you placed around Mister Potter's home would protect him from harm," Minerva said, her anger rising the closer Albus got to his chair.

When he finally gripped his chair, before he could rise to sit in it, she grabbed him by the collar and pulled his face right next to hers, yelling at him from a hair's breadth away.

"You LIED to me! You assured me he would be safe! I was supposed to have raised him like a son! He was supposed to have been loved! To have been cared for! To have been treated with kindness and respect! You were a witness to the will! You deceitful, thoughtless, careless bastard! I am giving you fair and timely warning, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, that should you lie to me, whether through fabrication or omission, in the future, I will duel you to the death and I will not be the one dying that day. Do I make myself perfectly clear?" Minerva screamed at him and pushed him away, watching as he once more fell to the floor. "I expect you to contact Gringotts, agree to meet with a Goblin representative on neutral ground and spend the three days it will take you to watch those memories, Albus. I will not speak to you again until you have done so, unless you have no desire to mend this rift between us." She turned and left without waiting for an answer.

Albus looked in surprise as she slammed the door on her way out. He sat up to lift himself into his chair when his vision turned grey.

It was an hour later when Severus entered Albus' office to find him unconscious on the floor with a black and purple hand-sized bruise on his left cheek. It would be a day later when Albus awoke in a room at St. Mungo's.

-oOoOo-

Albus awoke to a brightly-lit white room. He looked around at the fuzziness of the room and reached over to the night table and found his glasses and put them on. The room came neatly into focus. He turned and saw that Severus was sitting in a chair, reading a potions periodical.

"Severus?" Albus asked.

Severus picked up a piece of paper, placed it between the pages he had been reading and set the magazine down, then looked at Albus. "Albus," he said.

"Where are we? This doesn't look like the infirmary," Albus said, lifting himself to a sitting position in the bed.

"We are at St. Mungo's, Albus. Poppy refused to treat you until, as she put it, you look in on what you put the boy through. Since it is Tuesday, I would suggest you do what has been asked of you so that you are fully informed for the Board of Governors meeting Monday evening," Severus said, then smiled a small, almost spiteful smile, "I, too, had a discussion with Minerva, although it would appear our conversation was less... energetic than the conversation she had with you. My jaw was not dislocated after we spoke."

"Severus, I cannot waste three days right now. We have to find Harry and put him some place safe," Albus said.

"Albus, Harry is safe. Harry is much safer than you are at the moment. Tell me, Albus. Where is young Lord Potter staying at the moment?" Severus asked mildly.

"I have no idea, Severus. That is why we must find him!" Albus exclaimed in frustration.

"Albus, you have no idea because he is under Goblin wards. Goblin wards which were practically given to him. You also might be interested to know that he is now Lord Potter. Do you recall the oath you took as Headmaster of Hogwarts? Do you know what would happen if you actively attempted to incarcerate or otherwise detain a Founding Family's Lord?" Severus asked.

Albus thought for a moment. He didn't really want anyone, other than himself, knowing he had never sworn the oaths for Headmaster of Hogwarts or Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.

When he didn't speak, Severus continued. "Regardless of whether you care or not, I have already made arrangements with Gringotts and St Mungo's for the two of us to watch the three days worth of memories Minerva felt so compelled to speak to you about. You will watch them with me, Albus, or you will lose three of the four heads of house if you are not sacked Monday evening yourself."

"You would leave Hogwarts, Severus?" Albus asked in subdued shock.

"No, Albus. I would be the only Head of House you would have left," Severus explained. "Pomona, Filius and Minerva have all made their intentions clear, both to the Board of Governors as well as to me. You will watch those memories before you leave here and before the Board of Governors meet Monday, or the first words you will hear when you walk into that meeting will be something along the lines of, 'You're fired'," Severus said.

Albus sighed with a resigned look on his face. "When will the Goblin representative be here?" he asked.

"He is already here, waiting on us. Perhaps you would like to get up, get bathed, eat and then we can begin," Severus said. He stood and walked to the door. Before opening it, he half-turned. "Albus, Minerva indicated she was upset with me for making presumptions about Harry's upbringing. I believe many of my perceptions about him will be torn asunder when we are done with these memories. Minerva said that she was gravely disappointed with you and your behaviour. If, as I suspect, I am correct about my presumptions, I will presume you will do whatever is necessary to ameliorate your relationships with all of the people you have wronged, much as I will have to do, even if it means losing my life," Severus said and left the room.

Moments later a mediwitch entered. "Good morning, Mister Dumbledore. My name is Bonnie and we need to get you bathed for your meeting and I have some potions for you as well," she said with a bright smile.

Albus looked at her and could not help but feel a level of menace from this witch.

-oOoOo-

Even with the wards, charms, spells, rest periods and nutrient potions provided to both Severus and Albus during the three days of watching the nine and a half years of memories, Albus, and from his appearance, Severus as well, felt soiled beyond redemption.

Albus had expected a normal pensive-like experience witnessing the events as a detached bystander.

Using some Goblin magic Albus was unfamiliar with, Albus and Severus actually experienced the abuse first hand, as if the abuse were being carried out against them directly.

The habitual, systemic emotional, physical and psychological abuse from Vernon Dursley and his son, Dudley, were targeted at destroying the boy's entire being, centred on his magic. From what Albus could see, reflecting upon the memories, Vernon's wife, Petunia, was only an aggressor when either of the two male Dursleys were at home or expected home soon. One particular moment stood out in Albus' mind, after Harry's arm had been dislocated by Vernon for some imagined failing of Harry's. It had been Petunia who had taken Harry to task, given him one of her Valium and, once it had lulled the boy into a stupor, she had put the joint back in place. Harry had been four years old. Upon his return from his weekend business trip, Vernon had noted the boy had some of the use of his arm back so be broke it by slamming it in the cupboard door and threw him into the dark prison cell beneath the stairs before storming off and demanding an explanation from Petunia. The memory played long enough to hear Petunia scream and the next day when she let him out of the cupboard to make breakfast, she had a blackened eye and was holding her ribs. She'd had to stay home two weeks before the bruising on her face had completely disappeared. It was not the only time Petunia had helped Harry, but it was the most memorable.

Albus could barely stand when he first came out of the memories and, thankfully, the Goblins had provided him with a bucket, a glass of water and a carafe of water to refill the glass. Although his stomach was mostly empty, he completed the process of emptying his stomach into the bucket. The water was especially helpful when he no longer had anything in his stomach to come up, but his stomach and mind felt it necessary to continue. Albus drank and regurgitated three glasses of water before his stomach calmed sufficiently. He knelt on the stone floor and began crying in earnest, flashes of his experience as Harry in the goblin pensieve rushing through his mind. "Harry, I am so sorry. I wish with all my heart I could take all of those years back and put you with people who loved you. People who cared for you. I am so deeply, terribly sorry," he said to the wall and the air. He cried for some time before he heard a door open behind him.

Albus stood and turned to find an older, immaculately-dressed, Goblin standing in front of him, looking at him as if he was a specimen in a potions shop.

"I trust the water helped, Mister Dumbledore?" the Goblin asked with no hint of amusement.

Albus nodded. The Goblin snapped his fingers. Two other Goblins, both wearing plate mail, walked forward, bearing pillows. Upon each was a wand and a vault key. Albus looked in shock as these were his wands. He reached out for them when the well-dressed Goblin spoke.

"Mr. Dumbledore, you are, of course, aware your vault and properties have been seized per treaty, based upon your actions nearly ten years ago," he said.

"I am, Sir," Albus said.

"My client, Lord Potter, felt this was an unfortunate application of the law and wanted to make amends. As he is a friend of The People and a personal friend of both Guilder Gringott and Branch Manager Ragnok, I was asked to personally oversee your care," the Goblin said.

Albus hoped he wasn't displaying the fear and panic on his face that he felt in his heart. The Goblins could be utterly ruthless under the treaties they had with the crown when it came to interfering with wizards or witches the Goblins considered friends.

"It is clear to me you have not yet fully recovered from your experience with Lord Potter's memories as I can see concern and worry on your face. These are likely the best emotions you could be showing at present," the Goblin said. "I have a choice for you, Mr. Dumbledore," he gestured to the pillows. "On each of these pillows you will find one of the wands you were carrying and a key. I should point out to you, if you were unaware, the wand in your possession on the black pillow belonged to a vassal family beholden to the House of Potter and The People and The Crown would like to see it returned to House Potter; most specifically returned to the current Lord Potter. The Elders of The People specifically asked you be given an opportunity to freely surrender this wand to Lord Potter, to whom it has been explained it would best be kept in his Founders Wing until he reaches his majority. I likely need not explain the reasons for this to you, Mr. Dumbledore."

Albus felt torn. He had vanquished Grindelwald to achieve the wand and knew it could only truly pass to one who had vanquished its wielder. "Do the Elders expect me to lose a duel to young Harry for me to surrender it?" he asked.

"No, Mr. Dumbledore. Our researchers have examined the means wherein the wand and the other items associated with it were created. Freely giving the wand to another is also considered a means of surrendering, but it is considered the most honourable means of passing on these items," the Goblin said.

"Sir, you have me at a disadvantage. I do not know your name," Albus said.

The goblin slightly bowed to Albus and stood up again. "I am Elector Ironclaw of Gringotts and tribal leader of the Thracknoir Tribe," Ironclaw said.

Albus' eyes widened.

-o-

In the last Goblin rebellion, the wizarding world was all but on the verge of being slaughtered by the rebellion led by the Thracknoir Tribe. They were considered by all wizarding kind as the elite warriors of The People. They had never shown fear of death and had never ever slaughtered captured prisoners. Yet, when the wizards had lost all hope and saw their death marching towards them, a witch had walked out to the coming wall of death and called to the Goblin general for parley. The general and his senior warriors spoke in quiet, almost reverent tones to this witch. At the end of the two days, the witch called forth the remaining leaders of the wizards and instructed them to sign the treaty in front of them or wizarding kind would be no more. The treaty was signed and, much to the surprise of the wizarding leaders, the Goblin general surrendered his sword to the leader of the wizards. His words were said to be, "I would sooner surrender my forces to you than to harm one hair of a friend of The People." Regardless of what Binns might teach, the last Goblin rebellion was not put down by an army of wizards, but by a single witch: Corinne Amanda Lovegood.

-o-

Albus returned Ironclaw's bow. When he stood, his decision was made based on his memory of what brave men and Goblins did to insure the continuity of wizarding kind. "I would, with a lighter heart, gladly entrust a most-worthy Goblin to take my wand to Lord Potter, to be held until his majority or the need is great, in his Founder's Wing," he said. He slowly and with great care picked up the wand in question by the tip and handed it, handle first, to Ironclaw. Ironclaw took the wand and placed it back upon the pillow and untied the key from the same pillow and handed it to Albus. When Albus touched the key, the Elder Wand disappeared from the pillow.

"You must realize by now that I am being formal with you, Mr. Dumbledore, for a very specific reason," Ironclaw said.

"Should you not then be referring to me as either Chief Warlock Dumbledore or Headmaster Dumbledore then?" Albus asked in confusion.

"And that question brings us to the very heart of the matter, Mr. Dumbledore. Were you to actually hold either of those two positions, I would be referring to you as one or the other. In an unusual meeting of the Wizengamot last evening, there was a vote of no confidence for your role as Chief Warlock called forth by Lord Lucius Malfoy. Lord Potter and the block of votes he holds, possibly to your surprise, abstained from voting on this matter, not that it would have mattered in any event as the vote of no confidence was otherwise upheld unanimously. Chief Witch Grizelda Marchbanks was then elected into office after Lord Black's faction put her name forward and Lord Potter's faction seconded her name. Lord Malfoy had also managed to have his name entered into the running, but he garnered only seven votes. He seemed most upset," Ironclaw said, looking off into the distance for a moment with a smile on his face. He then turned back to Albus.

"As to your role as Hogwarts' Headmaster, sir, that brings us to your second choice of the day. For reasons unknown to me, Lord Potter is quite fond of you. I suspect it is his youth or his upbringing, but who's to say. In any event, Mr. Dumbledore, your second choice today is as follows. You can choose to take the oath of the Headmaster of Hogwarts today before leaving this room or you may leave this room today and you will never be allowed to step onto the grounds of Hogwarts for as long as you shall live," Ironclaw explained.

Albus swallowed. _Never see Hogwarts and all of those bright, young minds? I cannot bear the thought!_ "Is the required quorum of members of the Board of Governors available on such short notice to receive my oath?" he asked.

"As it only requires two-thirds of the members of the Board of Governors, or their proxies, to be present for this, I can assure you the necessary quorum is on hand and awaiting your decision, Sir," Ironclaw said.

"Very well. I freely choose to accept Lord Potter's generosity and hope one day to be forgiven for the mistakes this old man made in placing him where I did. I wish to give the oath of office, Sir," Albus said contritely.

Ironclaw gestured to the warrior with the white pillow to bring it forward. Ironclaw then gestured for Albus to take his wand. He removed a scroll from his pocket. "Sir, please repeat the oath after me," Ironclaw said.

Albus was taken aback a moment, "But Elector Ironclaw, we need the quorum to be present," he said.

"I am the proxy for three-quarters of the Hogwarts Board of Governors, Mr. Dumbledore. Now, as I was saying, repeat after me. I, state your name, do solemnly swear to uphold..." Ironclaw read the oath and paused periodically so Albus could swear it.

"...I so swear. So mote it be!" Albus exclaimed at the end. An incandescent flash of light blinded Albus for a moment. When he could see once again, with great surprise, he noted his colourful robes had been changed to a brilliant, immaculate white.

Ironclaw bowed to Albus once more and extended his hand. Albus returned the bow and took Ironclaw's wrist in his hand. "Let me be the first to congratulate you on taking your first step on the road to redemption, Headmaster Dumbledore," Ironclaw said.

As Ironclaw said the words, "Headmaster Dumbledore", Albus felt as if an enormous weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

Ironclaw untied the key from the white pillow and offered it to Albus. "Now as to these keys, Headmaster. The first key is keyed to the Dumbledore family vaults which were seized and given to the person deemed most wronged by your actions. Young Harry asked that I inform you that neither he nor any agent of his entered or removed any properties from these vaults, even though they were legally his to do with what he wished," Ironclaw said. The relief on Albus' face was tangible.

"As I said, he is quite an honourable and forgiving lad. He is also generous nearly to a fault. He understands there are many children who are magical but whose families do not have the means to attend Hogwarts. This information was provided to him by both Gringotts and by The Ministry's Book of Names. Lord Potter has insisted that all children who are able must be given the opportunity to learn their magic at his birthright school. Therefore, all magical children eleven to thirteen years of age whose families did not have the means to send their children to Hogwarts shall be informed their way is being taken care of by other means and they are to start as first years this September. If any of their siblings are also magical, the funds will be used to have them taught as best as possible, with age-segregated groups at an alternative location provided by Lord Potter. These children will be allowed to experience the same amenities Hogwarts has today but will be using a different set of instructors, hired from recently-graduated students of Hogwarts. These instructors shall be under the same new levels of behaviour Hogwarts instructors are now required to meet and will be hired and managed by the Hogwarts Board of Governors. Gringotts is charged with overseeing and auditing the funds from this account and providing the Board of Governors periodic statements," Ironclaw finished explaining.

Albus was stunned. Many times a bright, beautiful mind had been found, only to be passed over because his or her family did not have the means to send them to Hogwarts. This was truly a dream come true for many, many children.

"Headmaster Dumbledore, please do not think me unkind or untrusting of you or the oath you just took, but I must, as a duty to The People and Lord Black, who asked me to convey this message to you personally as he is still unable to do so. Should you bring about any additional harm to Lord Potter through intentional behaviour, The People shall place a price on your head of one million galleons and a deed and portkey to an extradition-free island. Lord Black also indicated he would match the amount. That boy's safety is my highest priority as stated to me by Guilder Gringott. I do hope you understand the level of trust we are placing in you," Ironclaw said.

Albus nodded, not trusting his voice. _Aberforth would hunt me down for two million galleons!_

"Then, Headmaster, our business today is concluded. If you will excuse me I have another appointment of equal importance," Ironclaw said.

Albus bowed then stood and extended his hand. Ironclaw returned the bow and took Albus forearm in his hand. "May your vaults line with the gold of your enemies," Albus said.

"And may your path stay on the straight and true towards the redemption you seek," Ironclaw said, surprising Albus.

"Oh, and Headmaster, those wards you placed on Harry's relatives' home, tying the protections to the life-force of his aunt? Because of his treatment, they instead had the effect of binding his magic and limiting the size of his core. Please keep that in mind," Ironclaw said, hearing the sound of Albus sucking in air in shock.

With that, Ironclaw turned and left the room while the guards showed Albus to the public floo room at St. Mungo's.

-oOoOo-

Severus, too, was given the experience of living through Harry's years of pampering from the Dursleys. Unlike Albus, for whom the physical pain had been somewhat deadened, Severus had no dampers in place and was allowed to feel the full effects of having his femur broken at the age of six and having to have his leg strapped to pieces of pipe because "...a useless freak like you doesn't deserve to be sent to the hospital to mend...". When Severus came out of the memories, he rolled off the couch he had been laying on, landed heavily on the floor and emptied the contents of his stomach where he lay. His ribs were still tender where the muggle boy had beaten Harry repeatedly until four of his ribs had been broken at age seven. A massive headache still raged from the hairline skull fracture Harry had received on Dudley's ninth birthday when he had struck Harry with his new cricket bat, "...to break the bat in..." the boy had laughingly said at the time. Severus retreated into his mind, separating the physical pain away and gathered his magic. He systematically reviewed his body and found there was no actual damage, just the memories and pain induced by the memories. He began his meditations and performed them for several minutes before he felt an intrusion nearby. He came back to awareness and noted an immaculately-dressed Goblin standing at the door. He stood and noted there was a glass of water, a carafe of water and some damp towels on the table in the room. The Goblin gestured for him to make use of them, which he did. Once he had washed the mess from his face and hair and drank some of the pleasantly cool water, he turned to the Goblin and bowed deeply, his hands palms up and his fingers splayed. He held this position for a count of ten then stood once more and opened his eyes.

The Goblin bowed slightly and stood once more. "Potions Master Snape, we are impressed with your manners," the Goblin said, "In return for such a gracious display of trust, I shall introduce myself. I am Elector Ironclaw and I am here specifically at the request of Guilder Gringott and Branch Manager Ragnok."

Severus hid his shock well, betrayed only by a slight tightening around the corners of his eyes.

"Potions Master, I understand there was some enmity, for good reasons at the time, between you and the late Lord Potter. I understand that based on this enmity, you believed Lord Potter had experienced a similar upbringing and was made from the same mould as the late Lord Potter. Would you say this is an accurate estimate of the situation before you viewed the memories you were permitted to experience?"

"I would say that is a nearly wholly accurate statement, Elector Ironclaw," Severus said.

"And how would you describe your feelings about Lord Potter now, Potions Master Snape?" Ironclaw asked.

Severus thought for several moments. _He survived conditions that would have grown death eaters taking their own lives. Not once did he beg for help. Not once did he break._ "I have misjudged him to my own detriment," Severus finally said, then realizing he had to be as honest here as he had to be with himself, "he survived trials I would not have and is a far better person than I could ever hope to be."

"Perhaps in your own mind, but Lord Potter has left open a path of choice to you, Potions Master," Ironclaw said.

Severus narrowed his eyes at the Goblin. "And what choice do I truly have with this on my arm," Severus asked, ripping the sleeve from his robes and exposing his faded, but still present, dark mark.

Ironclaw smiled grimly. "With that remaining on your arm and entwined around your soul, none at all," he said.

"Precisely, Elector. I have no choices," Severus said, a hint of despair in an otherwise iron tone.

"You misunderstand, Potions Master, as I have not yet told you the choice you face. You see, Voldemort gave you that mark, bound you to him of your own free will, using your soul and the soul of the person whom you tortured without mercy and killed. It is powerful, evil magic," Ironclaw said. Severus looked at him in shock.

"Oh yes, we at Gringotts are fully aware of this variant of the Protean charm. Gringotts does not possess a way to remove it," Ironclaw explained.

"Then what is this choice you speak of?" Severus asked in desperation and exasperation.

Ironclaw fully faced Severus and snapped his fingers. Two guards stepped forward. One carried a silver pillow with a gold chalice emitting noxious red fumes. The other carried a bright green pillow with a wicked looking dagger whose hilt was an emerald-eyed cobra.

"You can choose to remove the mark both from your arm and from your soul. There is a price, which is two-fold, for doing this, which you must agree to perform. I will explain this cost before you move forward with it, so you are making a fully-informed choice. Do you understand?" Ironclaw asked seriously.

"I would do anything to rid myself of this mark," Severus said adamantly.

"While you may think that, allow me to tell you the cost first," Ironclaw said.

Severus nodded and gestured for him to continue.

"There are components to the price. The first component of the price is physical pain. You will be required, of your own volition and under your own power, to plunge the Dagger of the House of Gaunt straight through the middle of the mark on your arm until it protrudes through the other side. It must stay there until the mouth of the dagger spits blood and its eyes turn blood red. You must then pull the dagger out, drink the potion from the chalice and hold the chalice tightly against the mark. It will draw the magic from your body and soul the way a poultice draws poison from a wound. Once this begins, it can only be stopped one of two ways; your death or the removal of the soul magic binding you and your magic to Voldemort. Do you understand this portion of the price?" Ironclaw asked.

"I do, and would carry this out willingly," Severus stated without fear.

"The second part of the price is mental anguish. You must atone for the murder you committed. The ghost of the person you killed has been trapped in a soul well, causing the spirit unimaginable pain. When the mark is removed, the pain is removed, but the memory of that pain will linger with it for as long as you have had the mark unless you are willing to atone for your actions. That atonement is dependent upon the spirit of your victim. The spirit can not be exorcised by any means, not even your own death, and your spirit would be tied to this corporeal world to the end of days if you fail to reach atonement. Do you understand this portion of the price?" Ironclaw asked.

Severus hung his head in shame. "I understand and would willingly atone for my crimes," he said just above a whisper.

"The final portion of the price is one of servitude. Lord Gaunt requires an oath of fealty and servitude from the last surviving member of the House of Prince to the House of Gaunt to assist you with this ritual," Ironclaw said.

Severus looked up at him sharply. "Is this your idea of a cruel joke, Elector? The House of Gaunt is extinct and died when the last heir died in Azkaban," Severus said, anger radiating from him.

"Potions Master Snape, I never jest when lives are at stake. You are familiar with Founders' Rings?" Ironclaw asked.

Snape shook his head. _What in Merlin's name are Founders' Rings?_

"The signet ring of any House recognized by The Crown and The People may never be used to falsify a document. They may not be used or worn by any but the recognized head of that house, and it is the magic within the ring which recognizes the head of house and no law the Ministry could pass would allow otherwise. You are familiar with this so far, considering you wear the Prince Head of House ring?" Ironclaw asked.

Severus nodded then released the magic which hid the ring from view, allowing it to appear for the first time in many years.

"Founders' Rings are just that. They are the rings denoting the Head of one of the four Founding Families. One of these Families is the House of Gaunt. I have here a letter, signed and sealed by Lord Gaunt's hand just yesterday offering you this opportunity. I would like you to read it," Ironclaw said, passing the writ to Severus.

"_**Lord Prince,**_

_**It has been my experience no man or woman is either perfect or universally wise. My good friend Nicholas Flamel might argue that all men and women are dunderheads of one type or another, but that is a different discussion. I understand that, if you are reading this missive, you are on the cusp of making a life-changing decision in a direction I believe would benefit all of the magical races of the world. While you may consider requiring an oath of fealty to be onerous, let me assure you it is as much for your protection as it is for mine. I hold in my hands the keys to your future. You hold in your hands the keys to the future of generations of wizards and witches, both in your capacity as a Potions Master and as the head of the house at Hogwarts my illustrious predecessor founded. I do hope you find the cunning and the strength to select as I would have you choose, but know this: The choice is yours and yours alone. I can free you from a master whose yoke crushes the very breath and life out of the magic of these lands and brands her children like cattle for the slaughter. In return I ask only that you allow your soul to heal and work to heal the wounds you caused through poorer choices earlier in your life. I will respect your choice, regardless of which direction you choose.**_

_**Signed Lord Gaunt."**_

Severus sat heavily in the chair which appeared behind him, the note dangling in his hand. Ironclaw reached forward and gently removed the note from Severus' hand. He looked up at Ironclaw. "How?" he asked.

"Lord Gaunt's House has worked with the Goblins in the past and assisted us some eleven years ago in dismantling this mark from another of Voldemort's followers. That man had been working behind the scenes in efforts to end the cycle of terror from Death Eaters and their ilk," Ironclaw explained.

"How do we begin this?" Severus asked.

A table with a potion appeared in front of Severus. "It starts with a blood replenishing potion of Goblin manufacture," Ironclaw said and motioned toward the potion vial.

Severus uncorked the potion and sniffed it. He looked askance and sniffed it again. "This smells like strawberries," Severus said in surprise.

"It is my understanding the Goblin Potion Masters add ingredients during various times of the brewing to make the potions less palatable to Goblins so we don't begin to enjoy taking potions," Ironclaw explained and took the vial from Severus' hands and took a whiff from the vial. His expression changed to that of a completely nauseated Goblin. Ironclaw recovered and handed the potion back to Severus. "Were you trying to make me ill? It smells of those atrocious red berries used to regulate a dragon's digestive system," Ironclaw said.

Severus smiled a little smile and downed the potion all at once. To his continued astonishment, not only did the potion not taste of wet mandrake dung and thestral urine, but it had a sweet, almost melon-like after-taste. The sight of him licking his lips clean made Ironclaw almost want to vomit.

Ironclaw shook his head. "The next steps I have explained to you. The dagger must be plunged through the mark until its mouth fills with blood and its eyes turn blood red. You must then drink the potion from the chalice and then you must place the chalice over the mark and allow it to draw the evil from around your soul and out of your arm," Ironclaw explained again. "Do not worry, I will tell you what needs be done should the pain overwhelm you."

Severus nodded. The two guards brought their pillows over. Ironclaw untied the silk tie holding the dagger in place and handed it to Severus.

Severus gripped the dagger in his hand but was unprepared for what happened next. When he plunged the dagger into his dark mark, the head of the cobra came alive and deeply bit his right hand. The pain of the dagger had been excruciating but the cobra bite caused his right hand to feel as if it was on fire. The veins of his right hand and right arm turned light grey to grey to black as he watched the venom draw up his arm. He could feel it entering his heart and being pumped into the remainder of his body. The pain in his arm from the dagger was as nothing compared to the all-consuming, mind-shattering pain from the fire burning through his system, and yet he held the dagger in place, knowing this was his only true salvation. Suddenly he could feel the fire within him cool to a pleasant, almost intoxicating sensation. He looked at the cobra's mouth biting down on his hand and saw blood streaming out onto his hand. _Just a little longer, _he thought. A few moments later and the cobra released its bite, sealing the holes where it had bitten him with a bright green sludge. The dagger's eyes were now the colour of blood. He tore the dagger out of his arm and could hear a blood-curdling, throat-shredding scream, not realising it was his own. He grabbed for the chalice and gulped the thick, smoking, syrupy potion down. When the chalice was empty, it flashed a bright white colour and the inside of the chalice was filled with a bright, white-hot fire. He looked down at the bleeding hole in his left arm and saw black smoke attempting to escape. He slammed the chalice down over his dark mark and began screaming in earnest as the fire burned deeply into the flesh of his arm. He could feel the magic of the ritual fighting with the magic of the dark mark for dominion. While it was clear the magic of the ritual was winning, the magic of the dark mark was fighting with all of its energy and intent. He felt as if his body was being shredded and salt rammed into the wounds with bladed hammers. He felt as if the marrow of his bones was being drawn out. He felt the liquid in his eyes boiling. He felt his hands being shredded by the beaks of crows and the fire from the chalice cauterizing every injury in its wake. He felt long needles pierce his brain, his neck, his spine, his heart. He began to lose his grip on reality as the pain intensified yet again. The screaming coming from the dark mark's magic was now competing with the screaming coming from his own throat. Just as suddenly as the pain began, it was gone. Severus felt drained, as if his very soul had been torn out along with the magic of the dark mark and then the remaining pieces of his soul were reassembled and put back in him, healed and clean. As drained as he felt, he also felt an intense euphoria, as if a curtain had been pulled away and the sun, in all her beauty, had been allowed to once more shine in his heart. He opened his eyes and saw her. No matter how good the euphoria felt, he now felt an all-consuming anguish, for here, standing before him, was the spectral resonance of his one and only murder victim. She had been a child who, had she lived another week, would have seen her first day at Hogwarts. She looked worse than he remembered her having looked the night he tortured and killed her at the urgings of his fellow death eaters and Voldemort. _Please! It hurts so bad!_ she said to him.

He knelt down in front of her and cried, blood-tinged tears pouring out of his eyes. "I am so so sorry," he cried out. "You did not deserve what I did to you. I will do everything I can to ease your suffering." As he cried, the expression of pain seemed to lessen on the ghost's face. He cried out for her pain until he no longer had any tears left. Had it not been for the Goblin potion, he would have cried himself asleep. When Severus opened his eyes again, it seemed as if the ghostly girl was sleeping peacefully, but he doubted that would last long. _An hour of crying hardly makes up for over a decade of foolishness,_ he thought.

Ironclaw had witnessed both rituals done this way and thought Severus was, by far, the stronger of the two men. "Lord Prince, are you now willing to swear an oath of fealty to the proxy of Lord Gaunt?" he asked.

Severus nodded. Ironclaw bent down and unrolled a parchment upon the stone floor in front of him so that Severus could read it.

"I am ready to receive your oath, Lord Prince," Ironclaw said.

Severus knelt and read the parchment in front of him, knowing that regardless of what oath he was required to swear, he had already chosen this path. There was no backing out now. He bowed his had and began swearing his oath.

"Here do I swear by mouth and hand, fealty and service to The Crown, The People and the House of Gaunt."

"To speak and to be silent, to come and to go, to strike and to spare, to do and to let be, in such matters as concern The Crown, The People and The House." He paused a moment to read the parchment further."

"On my honour, and the lawful command of The Crown, The People and The House, in need or in plenty, in peace or in war, in living or in dying, from this hour henceforth, until the The Crown doth fall, or The People are no more, or Magic fails, or death take my line, or the world end. So say I, Severus Abaddon Snape, Lord Prince."

A blazing white light left Severus and illuminated the parchment, which rolled up and flew into Ironclaw's hand. Ironclaw turned and handed the parchment to one of the waiting guards then turned his attention back to the kneeling wizard.

"Arise, Lord Prince, vassal of House Gaunt. Today begins a new life for you," Ironclaw said, reaching a hand down to help Severus stand.

Ironclaw had one more surprise left for Severus, however.

"To prevent an untimely demise and your change in allegiance, I am going to apply a false dark mark to your arm," Ironclaw said. Severus looked down at his left arm and for the first time noticed the dark mark was completely gone and, although he had plunged the dagger into his arm, his arm was whole and without blemish or scar. Ironclaw took Severus' left hand in his left and drew his right fingers down Severus' arm. A slight burning sensation later and once more, the hated mark resided on his arm.

"Do not worry, Lord Prince, the mark will fade away unless you need it to be seen, you are in the proximity of other corrupt Protean charms or you are incapacitated. You need not be reminded daily of past transgressions except by those you have already freely chosen," Ironclaw said, looking into Severus' eyes. "There is one last bit of business Lord Gaunt insisted be taken care of today," Ironclaw said. One of the guards brought forth a silver pillow and tied to it was a gold key. Ironclaw untied the silk tie holding it in place and took the key from the pillow, turned and handed it to Severus.

"I do not need charity of funds," Severus said calmly with only the slightest hint of ire in his voice.

"Lord Prince, the gold in the vault this key opens is of only a secondary concern to the House of Prince. Lord Gaunt, however, felt it appropriate for you to have access to a small sampling of potion ingredients and copies of some brewing tomes from before the founding of Hogwarts. He could think of no one else he trusted with the materials or the knowledge," Ironclaw explained. "There is also gold enough to purchase seven years worth of classroom sets of Materia Magica so those students not in your own house would have the same advantage of knowing the reactions of the various materials with one another. It is presumed you will once again add this title to the list of required materials for Potions."

Severus had the good grace to hang his head and nod is self-disgust.

"Should you require any assistance from Lord Gaunt, Lord Prince, please come to the Concierge's desk at Gingotts and they shall ensure you receive Lord Gaunt's attention.

"Thank you, Elector Ironclaw. May your vaults line with the gold of your enemies," Severus said and bowed deeply, closing his eyes, holding his hands out wide and splaying his fingers, once more honouring the Goblin Elector who had been the representative to the benefactor who provided him with a survivable future.

"And may your path stay on the straight and true towards the redemption you seek," Ironclaw said, returning the bow in kind, this time, knowing a completely different man stood before him now.

-oOoOo-


	11. Summer Errors, Projects, Plans & France

-o-AN-o-

I appreciate all of the kind reviews people have given this story so far. Unlike the first eleven chapters, I am now writing as it gets published. This may cause a delay of up to a week between chapters, but I hope no more than ten days. I do still need to send them out to my copy editors, get them back, discuss corrections and suggestions, fill plot holes with plot concrete and generally patch them up well enough to post for your reading pleasure. Although I can usually get six to nine thousand words written in a sitting, my editors usually cut out two-thirds of it for being overly verbose or not leaving enough of the story up to the imagination of the readers. I keep all the original work in the event I decide they are nipping at the sherry too much.

-o-AN-o-

-oOoOo-

Luna, Harry and Hermione entered the lobby of Gringotts, followed closely by Dan and Emma. When they approached the Concierge, he was already smiling and had alerted Steelfist.

"Good morning, Lord Potter and distinguished guests. Senior Account Manager Steelfist will be here shortly," he said.

True to his word, Steelfist entered the lobby only a minute later. "Good morning, Lord Potter, Ladies, Doctor and Doctor Granger. Come, let us retire to my office so that Gringotts may know how we can be of assistance," he said with a flourished bow then stood and turned, leading the party to his office.

They entered Steelfist's office. No sooner had the door closed than Steelfist began chuckling.

"What are you laughing at, Steelfist and why the elaborate welcome?" Dan asked.

"Lord Parkinson was waiting in the teller line. He is a fawning boot-licker and I imagine was loathe to watch as a year-mate of his eldest daughter was treated like royalty," Steelfist said. He then looked at Harry. "How can I help you today, Harry?" he asked.

"I am Luna's guardian in for the remainder of the summer and wanted to know if there was any Ministry paperwork involved in making that official and Luna is coming on holiday with us and needs a passport," Harry said, handing Steelfist the wax-sealed envelope Xeno had given him. As Harry was handing Steelfist the envelope, Steelfist caught sight of the rings on Luna's and Hermione's fingers.

"Harry," Steelfist said, concern in his voice, "did you provide these girls with those rings?" he asked, already knowing the answer but needing it confirmed.

"I did. I wanted Luna and Hermione to know how much I cared for them and how important their friendship is to me," Harry said. Dan had a ball of lead in his stomach. Emma looked over at him with an "Oh! Hell! Now what?" look on her face.

"Why are you asking about our rings, Steelfist?" Hermione asked.

"Harry, I know you're somewhat new to all of this, but I would like to try an experiment, if I may," Steelfist said.

"Will anyone be hurt by this experiment?" Harry asked.

"Only me, if I am correct," Steelfist replied wryly.

"Then proceed," Harry said.

"Miss Granger, may I hold your hand with the ring on it?" Steelfist asked cordially.

Hermione reached her hand up and allowed Steelfist to take it, which he did gently. He then touched the ring and tried pulling on it.

The group in the room was shocked as not only did the ring not come off, but Steelfist was thrown into the back wall of the room. Hermione hadn't even felt it as his hand slid along hers almost frictionlessly. Apparently Goblins were made of sterner stuff than wizards because he shook it off and came back over to his desk.

"Miss Lovegood, may I take your hand with the ring on it?" he asked.

Luna placed her hand on his and he simply touched the ring, without trying to pull it off, and was thrown, once more, into the wall of his office.

He stood up again and sat down in his chair.

"What in the hell just happened?"" Emma demanded.

"One question first, Doctor Granger," Steelfist said, looking at Emma and Dan, then turned his attention to the three children. "Harry, when you placed these rings on their fingers, did anything unusual happen?" he asked.

"Not really. They did change size so they fit well on Luna's and Hermione's fingers, but I think the girls or I just did magic to make that happen," Harry said. Both girls nodded.

"Harry, I had presumed Lord Black was teaching you Founder's Law, Etiquette and Customs. I presume he has not yet discussed rings with you yet," Steelfist said.

"No, Sir," Harry said, worry and fear creeping into his voice.

"Thank you for that, Harry. It would appear, Doctor Granger, that congratulations are in order," Steelfist said tiredly.

Emma and Dan both looked with their full attention at Steelfist. "What, precisely, do you mean by that, Steelfist?" Emma asked.

"We will need to examine the Tome of Houses before I can be certain," Steelfist said, standing. The door to his office opened and he walked out, with the group following behind.

Luna and Hermione were practically wrapped around Harry's arms. Dan and Emma were only barely containing their panic and concern.

They walked downhill for several minutes through a series of low tunnels and entered an immense torch-lit chamber, whose ceiling was lost in the shadows. They could hear a deep, low-frequency thrumming high overhead.

"Who dares enter the Hall of Houses?" boomed a deep voice whose origin was lost in the echoes of the chamber.

"Steelfist of The People," Steelfist said, then crossed his arms in front of himself in a salute.

"Enter, Steelfist of The People," boomed the voice once more.

Steelfist ushered them in and walked up to the base of a tall podium upon which sat an enormously-thick book with two torches burning with a green flame on either side of it.

The group was suddenly surrounded by torches burning the same green flame. They looked up at the sound of large, leather-like wings beating to see an enormous green and blue dragon come down and land in the centre of the chamber. It turned its head skywards and, for several seconds, blew a flame from its mouth that was cobalt blue, followed by a deafening roar. It then turned its head and walked to the podium, the chamber floor trembling with each step. When it reached the podium, it raised its head up as if to see all of them, then lowered itself once more and lay at the base of the podium. The group could see a rope ladder tossed down the side as a tiny figure climbed down and walked up to the podium. The figure turned out to be a Goblin, who walked up to the opposite side of the podium and, from the sounds of it, climbed a ladder to get to the top of it.

"Which of you are from the Ministry?" the Goblin from the dragon demanded imperiously, looking down at the group from the top of the podium.

"None of these are Ministry people, Snapbone," Steelfist said, then gestured to Harry. "This is Lord Potter and his guests. We're here to examine the Tome of Houses with a specific interest in House Potter," Steelfist said.

"Lord Potter, you do us honour by visiting," Snapbone said, his tone much softened. He opened the book and began muttering to himself. "Abbot, Bailey, Calhoun, Farthington, Hanson, Kingsford, Mohler, Odswald," he muttered, than exclaimed, "Potter! Right. Current lord is Harry James Potter," the Goblin said and looked down from the podium, "That would be you, Lad," he said and looked back at the book. "Accounts in good standing, two Founders Wings, two wives with space for seventeen more, one hundred eighty four properties across all eight continents..." he was cut off by a loud chorus of exclamation.

"WHAT?" Harry, Hermione and Emma exclaimed.

"My apologies, Lord Potter. I said 'one hundred eighty four properties across all eight continents'," Snapbone said.

"I think Lord Potter meant the bit about the wives," Steelfist said.

"Oh. Here it is. Two wives with space for seventeen more. The first wife is Hermione Jane Granger and the second wife is Luna Selene Lovegood. Married and bonded to both, it says," Snapbone said.

Harry felt sick. _I had just wanted to show them my thanks for their friendship. How do I make this up to them? I didn't mean for them to be married to me!_ he thought.

Dan felt numb. _Shit! What the hell did I... how in the hell do I make this up to them?_ Dan wondered in his mind.

Emma was a bit more circumspect. _I wonder what impact this is going to have on them?_ she thought.

Hermione was ecstatic. _I hope I can be the best I can be for him!_

Luna, too, was over the moon. _Yes! Now I don't have to hunt a boy down and drag him back to see if Daddy likes him or not._

"Explain how marriage and bonding work, please, Steelfist," Emma said menacingly.

"Emma and Dan, as you can imagine, some things work differently for witches and wizards than they do for mundane people. Added on the complication that Harry is the head of two Founding Families as well as the head of several secondary families and added on to this, all of the nonsense surrounding the evening of October 31, 1981 and the silly moniker most people in the wizarding world have given him and the maelstrom of calamity which seems to surround Harry. Well, let us just say this is one of the complications being a founder can bring. When Harry placed those rings on Hermione's and Luna's fingers, the combination of Harry's magic with Hermione's and Luna's magic coupled with any emotional component, caused their magics to meld, forming the beginnings of a bond. What I don't understand, but the book is never wrong and cannot be tampered with, is that normally a bond does not turn into a marriage until the young man and woman consummate the relationship in some fashion. I cannot believe Harry and these two young ladies physically consummated their relationship," Steelfist said questioningly.

Emma slapped herself on the forehead and shook her head, silent tears of frustration running down her cheeks.

"Steelfist, if they were to intentionally merge their magics and cause a physical sexual release, would that do it?" Dan asked, looking at Emma, wondering when the enraged scream would come out.

"That would definitely result in their magics feeling the relationship had been consummated," Steelfist explained, . "What happened?" he asked when the three children all blushed, Harry looking at the floor and the two girls looking at Harry.

Dan took Emma by the shoulders and pulled her head down to his shoulder to get her to stop crying. "Harry, I think you, Hermione and Luna should explain the situation. I really don't know precisely what you did, only that Emma said something about hugging their magics and giving the girls orga... making them feel really good," Dan said.

Steelfist looked at the three children, "Do any of you mind if we document this for further research?"

"Do we get a say as to when the results of the research get published?" Hermione asked. "I wouldn't want Luna or Harry to be further embarrassed by this, although I, for one, am very happy to be married to Harry," she said.

Harry raised his head up and looked at Hermione in surprise.

"I am over the moon at being married to Harry," Luna said.

Harry turned his head and looked at Luna, then back at Hermione again, deeply into her eyes. "Why?" he asked, a look of fear and loathing on his face.

"Harry, you saved my life, you didn't hold me to the wizarding world's sense of a life debt, you are smart and brave and kind and sweet and loving. You bathe regularly, you brush your teeth, you give the best hugs and on top of all of that, I cannot imagine my life without you in it, even though we have only known each other less than a year," Hermione said, looking pleadingly into Harry's eyes while holding his right hand in both of hers. She leaned up and kissed him on the lips briefly.

When Hermione was done with her kiss, Luna put her hand on his cheek and pulled his eyes over to her. "Harry, I have known you less than two months and I have seen the great man you will grow to become. No matter what anyone else thinks or says, no one knows you as well as Hermione and I. You know I have not had a friend like you or Hermione before, but like Hermione, I cannot imagine what my life would be like without you or Hermione in it. Since I said I would ask permission first, Harry may I kiss you as well?" Luna asked earnestly, unshed tears in her eyes. Harry nodded. Luna stood on her toes and kissed him chastely and briefly. She then pulled Hermione's chin over so she could look into Hermione's eyes. "Hermione, without you, I would not have met Harry," she said. Hermione was about to interrupt when Luna placed a finger on her lips. "Shush and let me finish. You know in your heart what I say is true. I am certain I might have met him at Hogwarts, but not in the same way or under the same circumstances. Regardless, you and your parents were the catalyst for me meeting Harry and I hope to spend the rest of my life blessed with you as a friend and more," Luna said passionately then replaced her finger on Hermione's lips with her own lips, giving her a chaste, respectful peck on the lips.

The two girls then gave Harry a gentle, reassuring hug, Hermione's cheeks tinged with a bit of pink from embarrassment, being kissed by Luna.

Steelfist waited a few minutes before interrupting. "So to be certain I have this correct, other complicating factors for Hermione is that Harry saved her life from the troll," he said. Hermione nodded, not releasing her hug from Harry and Luna. "Luna has had few bonds of friendship before and this one is a particularly powerful one because it formed at the reading of Harry's father's will," he said. Luna nodded, not letting go of Harry or Hermione. "And Harry is simply an incredibly, for lack of a better word, nice, person," he said. Both girls and, to Steelfist's amazement, Dan and Emma, nodded.

"And he gave them rings. Did he mention he was kneeling before them? There was also something about what he said, but I cannot recall the exact words," Dan said.

"He was kneeling when he put the rings on," Steelfist said, a sliver of incredulity in his voice.

"Daddy, Harry said 'I promise to be your friend from this day to the end of the world and to be there when you need me' to both Luna and me," Hermione said.

"And he expressed eternal attachment to you. I see," Steelfist said flatly, shaking his head.

Emma had regained her composure and still had questions, "Does this happen often in the wizarding world?" she asked.

"Emma, the only thing I can think of that would make their bonds any stronger would be if the rings had their birthstones in them. That, and that alone would make for a power bonding," Steelfist said, chuckling slightly.

Dan slapped his forehead, causing Steelfist to stop laughing. "What is it, Dan?"

Dan looked at Emma, then at the children, and finally at Steelfist. "They are the girls' birthstones. Rather large ones, and in both cases, I think more than one," Dan explained.

"May the goddess protect us as we serve," Steelfist said under his breath, but loud enough to be heard by all present, "well, there really is nothing to do but to congratulate the two Lady Potters," he said, "although we may want to contact Lord Lovegood to determine if he has any objections to this marriage."

"Daddy won't be upset at all," Luna said, then added thoughtfully, "at least not enough to call an honour duel."

"Yes, well, let us hope that does not happen. We don't want blood running in the streets for days, now do we," Steelfist said. He then smiled, "Look on the bright side of this situation! Neither Hermione nor Luna need a guardian in the eyes of the Ministry as they are both considered adults along with Harry."

"Lovely. Just lovely," Emma said, "and what does this mean for us, their parents?" she asked.

"Oh, you're better protected as well. In fact, not even The Crown can interfere with this type of marriage due to the magic involved. They could try, but considering what the small amount of magic in the rings did to me just thinking about removing them, I am afraid that not even all of Her Majesty's men could bring about a cessation of these marriages, and, should they try, The People would destroy them," Steelfist said with pride. He then looked at the children who were, once again, in a three-way hug of sorts. Harry's head was resting on Hermione's shoulder, Hermione's head was resting on Luna's shoulder and Luna's head was resting against Harry's chest. All three had beautific smiles with their eyes closed.

"Was there anything else you'll be needing, Steelfist? Cuddles here needs her lunch," Snapbone said. At the mention of its name, the dragon raised her head and cooed towards Snapbone.

"Thank you, Snapbone. Your assistance has been appreciated," Steelfist said.

Snapbone climbed back down the ladder and remounted the dragon as Steelfist led the group back to his office along the same circuitous path.

When they entered, there was a packet of documents sitting on Steelfist's desk.

"Ah, here is Lady Luna Potter's passport, in her maiden name, of course. The muggle guardianship paperwork is here as well, Emma and Dan. And here is a bit of paperwork we need you to sign before leaving on holiday; it's the muggle paperwork for the sale of your practice. It would appear a classmate of yours, a Doctor Goldsworth, is wanting to expand beyond his four-chair dentistry," Steelfist said.

"How is Michael doing? I haven't spoken to him in ages!" Dan said.

"Doctor Goldsworth is doing well enough to have paid seventy percent up front with a seven and a half percent interest rate on the remainder of the note. Oh, you may want to look at the price we were able to negotiate, especially considering you will end up paying no taxes on the amount the way we structured the deal," Steelfist said.

Dan and Emma each accepted a copy of the paperwork to sign. It was Emma who first flipped to the third, and not the last, page of the documents to see the total purchase price. "five and a half million pounds? That's... that's... that's..." Emma was interrupted by Steelfist.

"Shrewd negotiating skills if I do say so myself. Our original asking price was eight million pounds. With the way we've structured the note, the good doctor is permitted to purchase the practice, has a secondary opportunity to purchase the building from Harry at fair market value and, with interest, will reach an overall cost, with interest of just over seven and a half million pounds, all of which will be going directly into your Barclays' account," Steelfist explained, handing each Dan and Emma a red, wax-sealed envelope. "These are your Barclays cards tied to your new Gringotts-backed accounts. They are gold to prevent you from confusing them with the card tied to Harry's allowance vault, which has been refilled from his draft vault since his rather sizeable purchase from himself," Steelfist explained.

"What purchase from himself?" Dan asked. _He isn't going to tell us Harry owns..._

"Harry recently made a sizeable purchase of jewellery from Harrod's. Harry owns a controlling interest in the holding company which owns Harrods. He also has a significant holding in the holding company which owns Selfridges. Needless to say, while it looks good on the books for Harrod's, it is a small net loss on Harry's books, which makes for a minor benefit in taxes. To be honest, it was probably a revenue-neutral transaction, but the knut-pinchers like Goldfinder deal with that level of minutia," Steelfist explained.

"I think I need to sit down," Dan said.

"I think I need a brandy," Emma said, sitting down in the chair appearing directly behind her. A house elf popped in, handing Emma a brandy and Dan a whiskey.

"Is there really anything else you need done before you go on holiday?" Steelfist asked.

Emma and Dan looked at one another then looked at Steelfist. Emma took a third sip of her brandy and nodded. "We still need to finish booking the travel and we have some packing to do... why are you smiling, Steelfist?" she asked, taking another fortifying sip of the brandy, while Dan's eyes were watering at his third sip of his whiskey.

"Travel arrangements have already been made for you. Any packing you need done, Gringotts' house elves can take care of, and shopping in the magical district of Paris, I am told, is second only by the magical shopping in Antarctica. If you do shop in Antarctica, please make certain you take a Gringotts personal shopper with you to prevent you from making purchases of items considered illegal in Europe and especially Britain. While I doubt any of you would care to purchase a frost dragon, only Gringotts may own them within the confines of Europe and Britain," Steelfist said with a laugh. He lifted the final item from his desk and handed it to Harry, or would have if Harry had a free arm, as each arm currently had a very happy witch attached. Hermione was kind enough to reach out and take the item.

"This is your portkey which will take you to your château in the South of France by saying 'château.'. If you say 'Paris' it will take you to the shopping district in Paris, which is open around the clock. Unlike the shopping district in London, Paris does not consider sale of many items to be illegal the way Britain does. Many of these shops will warn you of items which may be restricted here. Barchoke, one of my trusted assistants, will review any and all items you purchase and will point out to you which of them may not legally be brought into Britain. Back to the portkey, if you say 'Home' it will take you to the Granger home in Surrey and if you say 'Panic' or 'Evac' or 'Emergency' it will take you to the closest Gringotts branch, where you will be protected by The People. One of the three of you will need to activate the portkey," Steelfist explained.

Hermione was about to speak when Steelfist held up his hand, "There is one thing I had forgotten to mention. Lord Sirius Black shall be released early from St. Mungo's due to his unusually strong constitution and his uncanny, and unregistered, ability to turn into a grim. He shall be released in two weeks. Should he ask after you, what would you like me to tell him?" Steelfist asked.

"If it is during normal daytime hours, please give Sirius a portkey to the château. I would love to spend some time with him somewhere other than a hospital room," Harry said.

"It shall be as you ask, Harry," Steelfist said.

Harry was about to ask if Emma and Dan were ready to go when Luna sat upright in her chair and got a distant look on her face. Just as quickly, she relaxed once more and held onto Harry's arm again. "Steelfist, what happens to all of the elves who are given clothes?" Luna asked innocently.

"There aren't many, Luna. There are perhaps a dozen this happens to each year and they do not live long. Why do you ask?" Steelfist asked.

"Simple. I want them. I need them for a task which will give them all work and take them considerable time," she said. "I will bind them to me, if necessary, but hope Harry and Hermione will help, once I tell them the importance of the work I have for them," Luna said.

"One moment for me, Luna," Steelfist said then spoke some Gobbledygook down the pipe on his desk. He receive a response almost immediately which surprised him.

"You truly are meant for Harry, considering the trouble he manages to find himself in, Luna. There are currently twenty-two elves who wish to be bonded available. Should I ask them here?" Steelfist asked.

"Please do," Luna said.

"Very well," Steelfist said and once more spoke down the pipe on his desk.

"Harry, as my husband, I really need your..." Luna was cut off by the near explosion of pops from house elf apparation, which caused Emma to scream, toss her brandy snifter into the air and grab her chest. Four of the house elves nearly knocked themselves unconscious colliding in an attempt to catch the snifter in mid-air; a fifth one managed to catch it unharmed and handed it back to Emma.

Although Dobby had looked bedraggled, these elves looked worse. Their cheeks were hollowed, they were emaciated, several had long tears in their ear flaps. They appeared to be on the verge of starvation or worse. Two of them had to be held upright by others amongst them.

"...permission to do what I need to do," Luna finished.

"Of course you have my permission, Luna. What is it you're doing?" Harry asked.

"Thank you, Husband," Luna said and giggled.

Harry looked down at his shoes, a sad expression on his face. Luna drew his eyes up to hers. "Harry James Potter, I cannot think of a way you could have made me happier than to marry me. You are a kind, wonderful, sweet boy who will grow into a courageous, powerful wizard who will always be my best friend!" she said and kissed him on the nose.

"The same holds true for me, Harry James!" Hermione exclaimed and kissed him on the cheek.

Harry couldn't help but smile.

"As to what I am doing, these wonderful little beings have been given clothes..." Luna was cut off by most of the elves sobbing at the word clothes, "...as a way of punishing them and disowning them from the families they served. I plan on binding them to our House, giving them a new family and enough work to tire them out," Luna finished loudly, causing all elf tears to immediately dry up.

"But Luna, you can't enslave them," Hermione argued.

"Hermione, until you know more about how house elves sustain themselves, you shouldn't use words like 'enslave' when talking about a wizard/elf bond. While many families do not treat their elves with kindness, few families are truly unkind to their elves. Without a family's magic to sustain them, including a bond to the family, the elves wither and die. Many of these," Luna gestured at the group of elves, "would not survive a fortnight if someone does not bind them," Luna explained.

Hermione looked over the elves, tears in her eyes. "I don't want them to die," she cried. "What do we need to do to save them?" she asked, trying to wipe the tears from her eyes.

"We bind those of them who wish to be bound, then we give them work to keep them busy. The bond, our magic, the ambient magic surrounding them and the work we give them will sustain them, make them happy to know they are serving their family by performing the tasks we ask of them, much like the Hogwarts elves do," Luna explained. "The formal oath of bonding is simply to ask the elf his or her name, ask 'Do you,' then the name of the elf, 'freely bond with me?' then the elf will respond whether they choose to bond or not and, if the elf wishes to bond, the bond is complete," Luna explained. She turned to Harry, "Now that you understand what I want to do, Husband, may I demonstrate and then get your and Hermione's assistance?" Luna asked.

The appearance of the elves struck Harry to the core. These elves looked the way he had felt at the Dursleys. "Please continue, Luna and I will be happy to help," Harry said.

"Me, too!" Hermione exclaimed, looking at Harry and feeling an overwhelming sense of sadness coming from him._ I need to remember this and talk to Luna and Harry later about sharing feelings,_ she thought.

Luna approached one of the two elves being helped to stand and asked, "What is your name?"

"Mippy," the elf responded weakly.

"Do you, Mippy, freely bond with me?" Luna asked, placing her hand gently on the elf's head.

The elf placed her hand over Luna's heart, "I do freely bond with you."

Emma, Dan and Steelfist witnessed a white flash coming from Luna, Hermione and Harry which seemed to be aimed at the newly-bonded elf. It was apparent to all that the bond had been successful as Mippy was now standing on her own and appeared to be much healthier.

Hermione practically ran over to the other elf whose need appeared most dire and asked, "What is your name?"

"Popper," the elf responded.

Hermione, with tears in her eyes, put her hand gently on the elf's head and asked, "Do you, Popper, freely bond with me?"

Popper responded by placing his hand over Hermione's heart and said, "I do freely bond with you."

Once more, there was a white flash and Popper appeared much healthier.

The three children worked through the elves until all but one were bonded to them. Harry walked up to the last unbound elf, who seemed wary of his approach. When Harry asked its name, the elf held its hand up.

"Wait, Wizard. I was treated poorly by my first family and would sooner pass beyond the veil than be used for a spell target ever again," it said.

Harry took a closer look at the elf. Its ears were torn, it had scarring over its arms and face and was trembling slightly, whether through pain or fear, it was not known.

Harry knelt down in front of the elf. "May I know your name so we may speak? My name is Harry," he said, then gestured to Hermione and Luna, "and these are Hermione and Luna. As a member of my House, were anyone to use you as a spell target, we would cheerfully use them as a spell target. No member of my House will ever be abused in any fashion," Harry said.

"My name is Beltchirp," the elf said.

"Beltchirp, would you like to be a member of my House?" Harry asked.

The elf looked at Harry. Harry felt as if Beltchirp was staring into the depths of his soul. He nodded.

Harry stood and gently placed his hand on Beltchirp's head and asked, "Do you, Beltchirp, freely bond with me?"

Beltchirp replied, with enormous elf tears in his eyes, "I do freely bond with you." While the white flash had become expected, the change to Beltchirp was profound. His torn ears became whole again. The scars etched into his face and arms disappeared and he grew several inches, until the top of his now erect ears were almost at the height of Harry's nose.

All of the elves looked at Beltchirp and gasped. "Old One," Mippy whispered.

"Steelfist, when other elves become available, please let Harry, Hermione or me know. We have need of many," Luna said.

Steelfist, still a bit surprised Luna believed they needed this many house elves, much less more, merely nodded. This was, after all, a Most Valued Client. "Do you wish to purchase surplus elves as well, Harry?"

Harry looked to Luna, who simply nodded.

"Yes, please, Steelfist," Harry responded.

Steelfist turned to Dan and Emma, "Do you two know how badly Harry is ruining me? Saying things like 'please' and 'thank you' is going to spoil me so much I will only want to work with him, Lord Lovegood and Lord Longbottom, not that their accounts don't take all my time as it is," he said with a smile.

"Steelfist, do you think you could have uniforms made for the elves? Perhaps black tabards with their name on the front right above their heart and the Potter family crest on the front and back?" Luna asked, then turned to the horrified elves. "These are not clothes given with the intent to disown you, but uniforms to let all who see you know you are of House Potter and are not to be trifled with," Luna explained. The wave of relief washing over the elves was clearly seen.

Steelfist looked at her in amusement, "Of course, Lady Potter. Anything can be done for a price."

"Now we just need to fix the other half of the problem," Luna said.

-oOoOo-

Riptorn was performing his fifth interview of the day. He was one of the seven Goblins chosen for this work because he could readily detect falsehood amongst witches and wizards before the application of veritaserum. This mediwitch from St. Mungo's seemed to have all the attributes and skills they were looking for to fill the position of Director. That she was a woman mattered not one bit to either the Goblins or the Client. In Riptorn's estimation, this woman was perfect for the job. The three wizards and the witch he had interviewed this morning seemed more interested in the pay, political clout and benefits for the positions the Goblins were hiring for rather than the duties required of the position. "I believe we will be needing you to interview with the next level of management, Miss Martins," Riptorn said to her with a smile, which he did only to frighten wizards and witches. Bonnie smiled in return, which pleased Riptorn.

-oOoOo-

"The position we are considering you for, Miss Martins, is more of an administrative position; however you will have your own case load of children with special needs and oversight of the other staff working at the facility on a daily basis. You came highly recommended both from Director Wilkins of St Mungo's and Senior Account Manager Steelfist of Gringotts. I have spoken to Senior Account Manager Steelfist and he has indicated I should offer you the position of Director of this new private endeavour dedicated to the safety of orphaned magical children. Will you accept the position?" Bowelburster asked.

"I would be honoured, Sir," Bonnie replied.

-oOoOo-

Michelle Joan Markoff was a sad little girl. Mummy and Daddy had gotten mad at her repeatedly and beaten her for making things happen. They had prayed for her but strange things still happened. Mummy and Daddy blamed it on the demons inside of her and explained they were just trying to beat the demons out of her, so she tried not to cry too much. Then the nice people in the blue and yellow dresses came and made Mummy and Daddy forget all about her and took her here. While no one hit her here, no one was really friendly. She had to go to a new school and no one there knew her or wanted to make friends with her because she was from The Orphanage. It seemed to Michelle that whenever someone talked about the place, they always spoke with capitalizations and sadness in their voice. She was about to start in on a good cry because she was all by herself in her room when a funny little person appeared.

"Are you my new imaginary friend?" she asked.

"No, Little Miss. My name is Mippy and I am here to take you some place better. Do you want to come?" Mippy asked.

Before her strangeness had caused Mummy and Daddy to beat her, Mummy always said it was important to say 'please' and 'thank you' to people. "Yes, please, Miss Mippy," she said.

Mippy took her by the hand and popped her away. This was the third and final child from this orphanage taken that day. The elves were kept busy over the course of the next three days retrieving magical children aged four to sixteen from thirty-seven orphanages and over seven hundred foster homes where the children were either not well cared for or being actively harmed. In seventy-six of these cases, the parents were dispatched to the Goblins for review, sentencing and punishment.

-oOoOo-

Dan, Emma, Hermione, Harry and Luna had a wonderful time on holiday. The high point for Harry was Sirius visiting for a week, congratulating him on finding two beautiful wives and then apologising for not explaining the significance of jewellery for Founding Families to Harry. Sirius then reaffirmed the vassal oaths of the House of Black to the House of Potter. He also warned Harry of the concern growing in the United Kingdom of children of all ages being kidnapped by the dozens from homes and other places and asked Harry and the girls to be ever vigilant. After Harry swore Sirius to secrecy, he explained what Luna had enacted with the help of Steelfist and The People.

The high point of the holiday for Hermione was being allowed to enter Harry's library at the château, which was at least four times the size of the library at Hogwarts. She also enjoyed the nearly constant presence of Luna. Luna seemed to enjoy reading almost as much as Hermione and could sit for hours in silence cuddled against her. Hermione understood what it was like to be so long without friends and understood how much Luna's friendship would both help Luna's entry into Hogwarts as well as her own transition back. Spending the entire summer with Harry, Luna and her parents was so wonderful, she wasn't entirely certain she wanted to return to Hogwarts.

The entire holiday was Luna's dream come true. When Harry was napping and Hermione was in the library, she would sit snuggled up against Hermione in the library reading books from the zoological section of the library, which covered magical, muggle and mythical creatures. She had even found several books which mentioned some of the creatures she had discussed with her father, including snorkacks. Luna loved her time in the library, especially when Hermione would absently wrap an arm around her shoulders and kiss her head or when Hermione would read to her. During the evenings, after the meals all five of them ate together, they would all retire to the study, an erroneous description, since it was the size of the Hogwarts library, with various small nooks for sitting and larger areas to hold group conversations. There was one particular nook with two large, nearly half-round circular couches facing each other which would easily seat twenty or so adults with a low, round table in the centre between them. Harry would scoot into one of these far enough so that both girls could lay their heads on his lap and lay down along the couch to read. Dan would generally sit across from Harry, with Emma laying with her head in his lap. When Sirius had been there, he would sit two or three cushions away from Dan to give the Granger parents some space and would discuss the evening's topic.

Luna and Hermione also enjoyed swimming, although causing Harry's eyes to grow wide and his speech to become incomprehensible had also been fun the first few days they wore their less-than-modest swimsuits. Although Hermione was far from being fully developed and Luna had only just started developing, it gave their growing self-esteem huge boosts to know that Harry found them both to be pretty.

Dan and Emma's best times were just watching what they now considered to be their three children acting like children, having fun, scraping knees, smiling, laughing and generally being normal, albeit magical, children. Dan was especially pleased that Harry was incredibly respectful to both girls yet clearly had interests developing for them beyond friendship. That and the fact Harry had come to him several times during their holiday to privately discuss things about his developing body, the feelings he was experiencing about the girls, things he was noticing and the questions Dan had felt too awkward to ask his own father when he had been Harry's age. Dan continuously wondered how a person who had experienced such a horrific upbringing could be the amazing, open and respectful boy-becoming-young-man in front of him. The only thing he was concerned with was Steelfist's and Sirius' emphatic attitude that the three of them sleep together. While Dan understood logically that nothing more intimate than goodnight and good morning kisses were happening, his father-of-girl-children monster kept wanting to rise to the surface and deal with any boy sniffing too closely around his Little Kitten.

Although Emma, too, was concerned with the three sleeping together, she was more concerned with the girls pushing Harry too fast. While Hermione was more subtle in her attempts at getting magically hugged again by Harry, Luna would more openly test Harry's, and surprisingly, Hermione's resolve in giving and receiving magical hugs. When challenged with this, Luna had pointed out since both she and Hermione were Harry's wives, shouldn't they be prepared for giving Harry the best experience when he did choose to further explore the depths of their relationship in a more intimate manner. Even Emma blushed at Luna's point.

Unfortunately, all of the good cheer and happiness came crashing to the ground when they returned home to find a grim-faced Sirius awaiting them at the Granger home.

-oOoOo-

-Omake-

Hermione lifted her head up, "Cuddles? Isn't that the dragon Ironclaw let us feed, Harry?"

The dragon lifted her head at the sound of her name being called. She cooed softly. _That sounded like the brown-scaled one,_ the dragon thought. She stood and walked around the podium.

Hermione was jumping up and down in excitement. "It is! It is Cuddles! Cuddles!" she screamed, running out of the circle of torches.

"No! Herm..." Steelfist called out, but it was too late. He knew if he stepped from the circle, the dragon would simply eat him as well. Hermione's running distracted him long enough that he did not see Harry and Luna walk outside of the circle as well towards the dragon.

Hermione ran right up to the dragon and grabbed hold of one of its forelegs. "Cuddles!" she called.

Cuddles looked down at the small, food-like creature running towards her who somehow looked and sounded familiar. When it attached itself to one of her legs the way a giant scale tick might, she leaned her head down to sniff at it. _It IS the brown-scaled one!_ Cuddles thought and lowered her head further to gently rub the fine hairs of her face against the cute little creature.

Hermione giggled as the hairs coming out of the side of Cuddles face tickled her like a cat's whiskers.

"_You are such a cute little brown-scaled one," _Cuddles said.

Harry and Luna, who had almost reached Hermione stopped in their tracks when Harry stopped and Luna almost fell over save for the tight grip she had on Harry's arm. "She speaks?" Harry asked incredulously.

"What?" Luna asked.

Cuddles turned her head at the sight and smell of two other food-like creatures. She sniffed the air. _The nice black-scaled one is here too. And he's brought me a snack!_ Cuddles thought. "_Did my little black-scale bring me a snack?"_ she cooed at Harry.

Harry looked at the dragon then looked at Luna then looked at the dragon again, "_She is no snack. She is my mate,_" Harry said.

"You are a parselmouth, Harry," Luna said in surprise.

"A what?" he asked, noticing the dragon's head moving closer, sniffing nearer to Luna.

"A parselmouth, Harry. Someone who can speak the language of snakes and, apparently, dragons," Hermione said, still hugging Cuddles' leg.

Cuddles was pondering what she now considered the white-scaled one._ Not food but the mate of these nice ones,_ she thought.

"Steelfist, could you see about getting a sizeable snack for Cuddles here as quickly as possible. She hasn't had lunch yet and wants something other than one of my wives to take the edge off her hunger," Harry called out over his shoulder.

Steelfist face-palmed himself and told Snapbone to get the dragon a snack immediately. Two house elves wearing black tunics with a stylized gold G on them popped behind Harry with a four-metre diameter platter covered in bloody, steaming, freshly-killed meat.

"_My thanks, black-scale. Please call your mate closer to you so I do not harm her to get to the snack you so kindly provided,"_ Cuddles said.

"_I shall do as you ask,_" Harry replied, turning to Hermione, "Mione, we need to get back to the circle, please come here so Cuddles can eat. You can always come back after our holiday and see her then," he said.

Hermione gave the dragon's leg one last squeeze and ran over to Harry to snuggle into him and Luna.

The three of them walked back to the circle of torches to the amusement of Dan and Emma and the utter chagrin of Steelfist and Snapbone. All Steelfist could do was think, _Of course he knows how to speak to dragons. We may as well begin using his name as an emphatic and a curse now._


	12. The Last Days of Summer

-o-AN-o-  
>Thanks again to texan-muggle for the post-editorial corrections. It is greatly appreciated.<br>-o-AN-o-

-oOoOo-

Harry was with Sirius and Dan finding out the specifics of what had happened from the Goblins and the Ministry.

"All we are certain of at the moment, Lord Potter, is that the surprise attack was clearly targeted at Lord Lovegood and his daughter. That he was able to conjure a likeness of his daughter appearing dead and to kill six of his attackers speaks highly of his skill. While aurors responded to the attack within minutes, it was too late to capture any of the survivors of the attack. I am deeply sorry for your friend's loss," Amelia explained to the iron-faced young man before her, "When my people first came onto the scene, we thought Luna had been killed as well."

"Steelfist, I want my family protected immediately," Harry said quietly, anger filling his voice as it echoed off the walls. He then turned to Amelia, "Other than those in this room and the Goblins, whom I trust implicitly, who else knows Luna is alive?"

"None, Lord Potter," Amelia said.

Four aurors entered the room, ostensibly as security for the Director.

Sirius calling him by his title had Harry listening closely, "Lord Potter, if I may, as a Lord who has sworn an oath to you, I would like to instruct the Ministry on what is expected from them," he said, his own anger held barely in check.

"As you will, Lord Black," Harry responded, "You have our complete trust."

"Thank you, Lord Potter," Sirius said, bowing his head to Harry, who had already been instructed by Sirius to never bow to the head of a vassal family.

Sirius then turned to Amelia. "Madam Bones, should you determine who the defectives and cowards were who perpetrated this attack, House Gaunt," Sirius looked at Neville and Augusta Longbottom, who had been invited to the meeting. Neville nodded, as did Augusta, both had smouldering anger clearly glowing in their eyes. Sirius continued, "House Longbottom, House Potter, House Abbot, House Ainsworth, House Argyll, House Autenberry, House Bailey, House Black, House Bradford, House Carlisle, House Forester, House Hawkins, House Lancaster, House Mercer, House Pemberton, House Rowntree, House Spalding, House Thwaite, House Wembley and House York declare Blood Feud and Line Seizure against them. Should they be heads of house, their houses shall have no quarter. Unlike these boot-licking sycophants, however, we shall spare the truly innocent. All others shall fall before our swords. So say I, Sirius Orion Black, Lord Black, Speaker for all houses herein named."

"Lord Black, do you..." Amelia was cut off by an overtly angry Sirius.

"They killed my godson's friend's father. The head of a Founding Family. There is an eleven-year-old girl sitting in Gringotts, likely crying her eyes out over the death of her father, and she herself would be at your feet slain if it were not for pure chance. Her father lays upon his catafalque while we stand in this room arguing about a decision which has already been made. It is your responsibility to find who did this and report it to the Wizengamot. It is the Wizengamot's responsibility to pass judgement upon whomever carried out this crime. At least in this case you know the judgement in advance. Trust me when I say that innocents will not be slain before this tribunal. We will use veritaserum on each and every suspect, unlike my own false declaration of guilt. I can also assure you the Wizengamot will be voting on a change in the rules of engagement for your aurors. Stunners don't work against hardened killers. Should they fail to drop their wands and surrender, or fire curses at aurors or innocents, the aurors are to drop them in place. This is not an open license, Amelia, and any auror who steps over the line will be punished severely. We want the guilty. Ideally, they will be tried publicly, but if it means an auror going home to his family versus some villainous scum getting to their public trial, the auror takes priority," Sirius said.

It was at this moment that the Minister and the Under-Secretary to the Minister entered the room. "I understand an important meeting was taking place. Why was I not informed?" Cornelius demanded. He then saw Harry and Neville in the room. "What are these boys doing here? Aurors, remove them immediately!"

Harry stood, nearing his breaking point at the stupidity of the wizarding government. Neville stood as well. Not an auror in the room made a move towards either of them.

"Well, what are you waiting for, aurors? Do your duty!" Dolores Umbridge said imperiously.

"Lord Black, do we have a quorum?" Neville asked.

"We do, Lord Longbottom," Sirius said.

"Be quiet, Boy! Aurors, seize them immediately!" Dolores demanded.

"Enough!" Harry's voice, strangely deepened by his anger and magnified by his magic reverberated off the walls loudly enough for likely everyone in the Ministry building to have heard him. "I am Harry James Potter, Lord of House Potter. Director Bones, for what reason are these two needed for our discussion?" he asked, waves of raw magic pouring from him as he lost control of his anger.

"None whatso..." Amelia was cut off by Umbridge.

"How dare you, Boy! Aur..." Umbridge began shouting, but was silenced by Harry holding the glowing tip of his wand to her head.

"Director Bones, I believe you were saying something before you were so rudely interrupted while explaining to a quorum of the Wizengamot exactly what reason our meeting has been interrupted by two members of the government whose positions may soon be vacant," Harry said coldly, the end of his wand pulsing brighter and brighter.

"As I was saying, Lord Potter, no reason whatsoever. While Minister Fudge may need to be advised of the results of this meeting, Under-Secretary Umbridge is responsible for the more-pedestrian areas of the Ministry and has no responsibility over any area of law enforcement at all," Amelia said.

Neville chose this moment to express his and Harry's position on the matter, "Director Bones, I have no objection to Minister Fudge remaining as long as he remains silent until we are finished. He may then ask clarifying questions. Under-Secretary Umbridge has already insulted two of the four Founding Families today and has no business here. Please have her removed from the room before my friend, Lord Potter, removes her from the room using a method I can assure you only she will regret."

"Aurors, please escort Under-Secretary Umbridge to her home. I see no reason for her to further upset any Ministry staff who are actually performing their duties this evening," Amelia said to the nearest pair of aurors, who knew who their boss was and removed the frightened woman from the room.

Harry returned his wand to its holster and silently performed his meditation rituals for calming._ Inhale, one, two, three. Hold, one, two, three. Exhale, one, two, three. Hold, one, two, three._ He repeated this several times before he could feel his anger subside to manageable levels again.

"Thank you, Neville," Harry said, beaming a smile to Neville, who returned it in kind, both boys realising they would always have one another's backs. Harry then turned to Sirius, "Please continue, Lord Black."

"So, to reiterate, find these cowardly bastards, bring them to the Wizengamot and we will find the truth and pass sentence on them as appropriate," Sirius said.

"See here now. You can't just send them off to Azkaban without a trial!" Cornelius exclaimed.

"I know all too well, Minister, what that leads to. Rest assured, we will use veritaserum, determine the truth and pass judgement only on the guilty and their houses. Those who are truly innocent shall be spared," Sirius said, bristling at the man's impertinence.

"I am the Minister and I make those decisions. Not a couple of boys who..." Fudge was cut off by Neville this time.

"Tell me, Minister. Who can call for a vote of no confidence for the position of Minister of Magic?" Neville asked mildly.

"The Wizengamot, but I don't see..." Fudge was cut off again.

"And how many votes are required to pass a vote of no confidence?" Neville asked.

"A two-thirds majority," Fudge said, swallowing at the sudden realization that the three Lords present in the room likely had amongst them sufficient votes to rip him out of office before he left this room.

"Then I suggest, Sir, you stop putting yourself above the law and any attempts to see justice done upon the cowardly, treacherous villains who murdered the head of a Founding Family. Do I make our position perfectly clear, Minister?" Neville asked, anger clear in his voice. _If it wasn't for incompetent bastards like this, my parents would still be aware!_ he thought.

"I believe that is all the business the Wizengamot has with the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, this evening, Director Bones, unless there is anything you need from us in addition to the new rules of engagement?" Sirius asked.

"No, Lord Black. I realise your desire to mete out justice swiftly and surely, and appreciate the restraint Lords Gaunt, Longbottom and Potter are showing in this matter," Amelia said.

With that, Sirius, Harry and Neville moved to leave the room. Augusta paused a moment. "Neville, I need to speak with Director Bones and Minister Fudge a moment. I shan't be long," she said. Neville nodded and the three of them, along with all but two of the aurors, left the room.

Augusta looked at the two aurors and then at Amelia. "Gentlemen, you are not needed here. Please wait outside the door," Amelia said to the two aurors. They nodded and left the room, closing the door behind them.

Augusta turned her full attention to the Minister. "Cornelius, what in Godric's name do you think you're doing? You'd best recognize the faces of those two young men you called 'boys' today because between those two and Lord Gaunt, they are effectively the entirety of the Wizengamot with the exception of forty or fifty votes. The absolute last thing you or anyone under you wants to do is alienate them or annoy them. They will step on your neck faster than you can spit. They are angered by what was done to their friend's father, who was essentially one of their peers. They are angry, powerful, youthful men in their own right. For goodness sake, Cornelius, those two 'boys' have their own signed treaties with both The Goblins and The Crown. They are not to be trifled with," Augusta's chest was heaving by the time she was done with her rant.

She then turned to Amelia. "I can stay their hands for only so long. They are Lords as recognized. But they are also still boys and have the trappings and failings of youth. One of those failings is the lack of patience. Sirius can slow them down. I can slow them down. These are only delaying tactics. If they decide your department isn't handling this case with the utmost priority, they will call in the Goblins and their ilk and then it will be a bloodbath to end all bloodbaths. Once they start down that road, there will be no stopping them until the guilty parties' heads are upon pikes along with the heads of anyone who provided them with refuge or attempted to hamper the rightful hunt for them," Augusta said, looking pointedly at the Minister.

-oOoOo-

Luna had streams of silent tears running down her face as Emma and Hermione held her in a forlorn effort to comfort her. Susan was sitting at Luna's feet, resting her head against Luna's knees, just to let her know she was there and cared. There were two full platoons of Gringotts Security Staff between the lobby and the room the four were sitting in. There was one additional squad standing right outside the door and no one was going to get anywhere near the room without the most diligent of magical and muggle means of verifying their identity and their intent.

Luna suddenly turned and began sobbing into Emma's chest. "Why could I not see this? Why Daddy?" she cried out, continuing to sob.

Hermione, too, was crying. For her sister-wife. For the unfairness of it all. For Xeno. For her own pain.

A matronly Goblin woman walked in carrying a house elf, who was clearly on the knife's edge of living or dying. "Lady Potter, you asked for all house elves given clothes to be brought to you to bind them," she said.

Luna's sobbing abated slightly as she pulled away to see who had come. Upon seeing the house elf, who was more bone than skin, she tore herself away from Emma and knelt down next to the goblin. "What is your name?" Luna asked of the elf and placed her ear directly next to the elf's mouth.

"Sl... Sl... Slider," it said, barely audibly even at this proximity.

Luna carefully placed her hand on the head of the elf and asked, "Do you, Slider, freely bond with me?" She then took Slider's hand and placed it over her heart. She could not hear, but could see the elf's lips move in answer. There was a less-bright flash of light from Luna and Hermione than before their holiday when they had bound the group of elves to them. It was, however, clear that the binding worked. Although still emaciated and sickly, Slider had clearly been drawn back from the precipice.

"Beltchirp! I need you!" Hermione called out.

Beltchirp appeared next to Hermione and held his arms out widely, as if protecting her and Luna from some unseen enemy. Once he had assured himself there was no immediate danger to his witches, his eyes found Slider. Beltchirp's eyes became as black as flint then softened once more. He could feel the newly-formed connection between this elf and his family. He turned and bowed to Hermione, "Lady Hermione, I am here. How may I be of service?" he asked.

"Beltchirp, Lady Luna has just bound Slider to the House, but he didn't fully heal from the binding ceremony. Is there something we can do?" Hermione asked looking over at Luna and Slider.

Luna was still holding Slider's hand against her heart and still had her hand gently on his head.

Beltchirp could feel Luna's and Hermione's pain. "There is something which can be done. House elves used to have a way of sharing magic if an elf punished themselves too greatly. I can be the focus of the sharing, but the amount of magic Slider needs is beyond my power," he explained.

Luna immediately responded. "Can we use our magic to heal him?" she asked.

Having spent the entire month of July working on their project of saving elves, children and magic from the ravages of lesser minds, Beltchirp was used to the unusually strong desire for the members of the house he was bound to with giving of themselves freely to others in need.

"You can," he said, then turned to the Goblin matron. He snapped his fingers and an elf-sized bed appeared in front of her. He bowed before the Goblin woman, "Great Lady of The People, we thank you for bringing to his saviours our brethren and ask you to allow us to repay your inspiring kindness in any way that you would ask," Beltchirp said formally to her.

The woman set Slider down upon the bed in front of her, placed her hand on Luna's cheek and looked into her eyes as she spoke, "Long have been the wars of Goblinkind and Wizardkind, bringing about needless death and suffering, years of murder most foul, villainy so cruel, spoils so powerfully fought over and so easily lost," she kissed Luna's cheek and looked at Beltchirp's kneeling form, "Assist with the efforts of bringing to justice those who would poison and destroy The People and their friends. Of our friends, the elves, I would ask no more," she said, then turned and left the room.

Beltchirp stood and moved next to the bed. He placed one hand on Slider's head and another over his chest. "Ladies, if you would place your hands upon my back and push your magic to Slider, I will act as a conduit. This may weaken you for a short time and for that I apologise. I am ready," he said.

Luna, still kneeling, placed both hands on Beltchirp's lower back. Hermione placed her hands above Luna's hands. Emma watched as both girls' hands began glowing an incandescent blue. The field of luminescence grew, engulfing Beltchirp. From Beltchirp to Slider, that magic changed colour to a rich, golden orange. The orange field grew to cover Slider. Time seemed to stop for Emma and Susan as they watched. They then noticed a discernible change in Slider. He began filling out, the colour of his skin went from a motley, ashen grey to a more vibrant, deeper grey they associated with healthy house elves. The orange field grew less in intensity as Slider grew healthier.

"Stop!" Beltchirp unexpectedly shouted. Both girls withdrew their hands and sat tiredly upon the floor, barely remaining awake. Susan stood and went over to the two of them, allowing Luna to slump against her in exhaustion. Hermione had a wan smile on her face as she looked at Luna and Susan.

Beltchirp turned, snapped his fingers and an ultra-king bed appeared in the room. He then waved his hands and Luna and Hermione floated up and over the bed. He lowered them gently. Susan stood and sat on the bed next to Luna's sleeping form.

"Mrs. Granger, I think I am going to take a nap myself. Although not as thoroughly wrung-out as these two, I am somewhat on my way," she said, kicking her shoes off and taking off Luna's shoes while Emma went to the other side of the bed and took off Hermione's shoes.

"That's quite fine, Susan. You are a good friend and I am certain Luna and Hermione would appreciate you being here when they wake," Emma said with a smile.

Emma helped Susan pull the quilt up over Luna and Hermione. She kissed both Hermione and Luna on their foreheads before walking around to the other side of the bed. Susan looked up at her quizzically. Emma kissed Susan on the forehead as well. "Sleep sweet, Susan. I will wait until the boys get back before sleeping myself," she said.

Susan smiled at the affection Emma displayed to her. She snuggled into Luna and was quickly asleep.

Emma moved back to the couch where she had been sitting holding Luna and waited until she was certain all three girls were asleep. She asked Beltchirp to lower the lights and for a lap blanket and just sat, watching three angels asleep in the warmth of downy comfort, losing herself in her own thoughts of the past, present and future.

-oOoOo-

Harry and Neville strode through the lobby of Gringotts with Sirius and Dan following behind. All four of them appreciated being stopped multiple times on their journey to be checked for various means of altering their identity or being compelled to do the bidding of others. Finally, it seemed to both Harry and Neville, they came to the room Emma and the girls were waiting in. Standing before the door was Beltchirp.

"Young Lords, the ladies within are asleep. A gentle awakening is in order," he said before quietly opening the door.

Slider had already left, joining the other elves in their duties to House Potter.

Emma was quietly dozing on the couch, the lap blanket having expanded to cover her.

Susan and Hermione had Luna sandwiched between them. It was the most peaceful Harry had seen Luna and Hermione since yesterday's news concerning her father. He was somewhat taken aback by the way Susan was nuzzled into Luna's neck, much the same way Hermione normally was. Hermione seemed to be nearly kissing Luna in her sleep, their faces so close to one another, their legs interlocked. Both Susan and Hermione had their arms wrapped around Luna and each other, while Luna had her arms wrapped around Hermione.

Dan knelt next to the couch and gently stroked Emma's cheek, kissing her lightly. She awoke in surprise, realized Dan was kissing her and, putting a hand on the back of his head, deepened the kiss, pushing all the love she had into it, communicating with this wonderful partner in life just how much he meant to her.

Harry sat on the bed behind Hermione and began gently stroking her cheek. To Harry's surprise, Neville sat behind Susan and mirrored his actions to Susan.

Susan's eyes fluttered open and she gently kissed Luna's neck before looking up to see who was stroking her cheek. She saw Neville and a smile grew across her face. Neville held a finger to her lips to ask for her silence, which she kissed.

Hermione, feeling the gentle stroking on her cheek and a small amount of movement when Susan's hand moved gently up her side, woke to have her vision filled with the beautiful, fragile flower of a girl who was blossoming under her friendship. She realised, in that moment, just how much this dear, sweet, little witch had so ensnared her heart, gracefully wrapping it around her own. Since Luna's lips were only a hair's breadth away, Hermione closed the gap and initiated her first kiss with Luna. It was tender, tentative and Hermione closed her eyes and felt for Luna's magic, slowly pushing all the warmth, friendship and, finally using the word in her mind to express the feelings she had for Luna, love, into the kiss. Although Luna's mouth was open, Hermione did not invade it; instead just tasting the younger girl's sweet, cinnamon breath.

Neville had been been looking into Susan's eyes when he saw movement and looked up to see Hermione move and kiss Luna. His ears turning pink caused Susan to look back at the other two girls. She had to stifle a sigh for fear of spoiling, for her, both a heartfelt and titillating moment, _I wonder what it would be like to kiss Hannah that way?_ she thought.

Harry could feel Hermione reaching out to Luna with her magic. There was a difference this time. An aspect to the magic that seemed more profound. He closed his eyes and watched how Hermione was not simply mixing her magic with Luna's as they had done before. Instead it appeared Hermione was drawing Luna's magic into her own, so instead of seeing two distinct streams next to his lake, he watched as the streams flowed and became one. Even as he watched, the width of this new stream grew beyond the width of what the two original streams had been. It surged and became a river. He opened his eyes to see what had changed.

Luna was surrounded by warmth. She could feel a tangible wall of love and safety surrounding her. On the cusp of consciousness, she saw Daddy was with Mummy now and the two of them were smiling at her from the other side of a sheer curtain, and she knew if she pushed hard enough, she could go through and be with them, but their gentle hands held her through the curtain, embraced her and slowly turned her so she was facing another. She could hear their whispered voices. "We love you, Our Little Moon. Do not let sadness stay in your heart for our passing. Enter into the next chapter of your life," she heard. She looked up to see who was in front of her. She saw Hermione, with Harry standing next to her. Hermione had her arms open and was reaching out to her. She ran into Hermione's arms and felt them gently close around her. She heard Hermione whisper a word that felt so right, it had her melting into the embrace. "Love," Hermione whispered and lowered her lips to Luna. In that moment, Luna surrendered herself, releasing all of the pain and anguish she carried over the loss of her mother and the guilt over not being with her father in the end. She surrendered herself to her future.

Harry saw Luna open her eyes in surprise then close them again and tighten her arms around Hermione. The two of them were lost in the other's embrace and magic for what seemed, to them, all-too-brief a moment. The kiss ended. They both opened their eyes and looked at the other. With Harry's Dursley-induced sensitive hearing, he heard both of them say, "Love," to the other. It was Hermione who realised they had an audience as Harry had continued gently stroking her cheek. Both she and Luna looked up at him to see a smile on his face.

Susan hadn't realised she had been holding her breath until she saw the kiss end. An explosive exhalation later and beginning to breathe again returned her vision to normal. "Wow!" she exclaimed softly, "That was just amazing to watch! I can't imagine what it must have been like to be a part of it," she said.

Neville promptly spoke up, "We'll have to see if we can try it sometime then," then blushed, realising he had spoken aloud.

Susan looked up at him and smiled.

Harry closed his eyes for a moment and reached out for his magic. He could see Hermione's and Luna's magics but they had changed. They now looked nearly identical, yet were over twice the size they had been before. He could see Susan's magic off to one side, about the same size the girls' magics had been before tonight. Right next to Susan's magic, he could see a thread of magic, small and tenuous, barely discernible from the ambient magic, much like the magic of the twins Emma was carrying. He opened his eyes to find the other four looking at him. "What?" he asked, puzzled.

"I take it you were not paying attention to the conversation?" Susan asked with amusement.

"He was playing with his magic again," Hermione huffed in annoyance, more at him not showing her what he was doing than at the actual 'play' he had been doing.

In an attempt to change the subject, Harry asked, "What piece of the conversation did I miss?" As if by way of answering, Harry's stomach grumbled loudly.

Susan laughed. "We were talking about going to The Leaky Cauldron to get a spot of lunch," she said, sitting up and helping Luna to sit up as well, "when the troll in your stomach growled the first time."

Harry stood and, with a smile, helped Hermione to sit up. Luna turned to Susan and gave her a hug, which the older girl gladly returned, "Susan, you are such a nice person. I enjoyed waking up with the feeling of warmth and affection all around me," she said, causing Susan to blush.

"I'd be happy to cuddle with you any time, Luna. I hope we can be friends forever," Susan said, feeling Neville squeeze her shoulders in agreement.

"Luna, are you feeling better? I'm really sorry about your father. He seemed a very sweet man," Hermione said, taking Luna's hand in her own and looking down at their joined hands.

"Mummy and Daddy visited me in my dreams and asked me to not be so sad about them being together and they said they would be just on the other side of the veil if I needed them," Luna said, a dreamy expression on her face.

Harry's stomach grumbled again, this time twice as loud as before. Dan and Emma had been oblivious of the group, involved in their own embrace. "My goodness! Harry! We need to get you fed!" Emma exclaimed, amusement in her voice.

Susan about bounced off the bed and gave Neville a quick peck on the cheek, then turned and nearly pulled Luna off the bed.

Harry assisted Hermione in getting up and she gave him a peck on the cheek, "Thank you, Harry," she whispered softly, a slight pink hue to her cheeks, "You are the quintessential gentleman."

-oOoOo-

Sirius had been in the corner of the room, watching the interactions Harry was having with his friends. He was truly happy that Harry had such good people in his life and, other than providing him with etiquette lessons and tales about his parents, wondered how he could be more than a peripheral contributor to his godson's upbringing and care. _I wonder if Remus would be up to coming out of seclusion to assist,_ he thought. Remus had been somewhat of a recluse since James and Lily passed. With Frank and Alice in St. Mungo's, Sirius' only contact with people outside of Harry, Hermione, Dan and Emma as well as some of his comrades from the Auror Corps, he hadn't had or made much contact with his school friends. _In fact, I have a duty I need to talk to Steelfist about today!_ he thought. He quietly left the room, noting as he did so that Dan and Emma were probably some of the nicest people he now knew and should reach out more to them in his efforts to be closer to Harry. For now, he had a family issue needing to be resolved. Once outside the room with the door closed behind him, he asked one of the Goblin guards to take him to Steelfist. The guard opened a panel in the wall, pulled out the speaking tube and alerted the Concierge that Lord Black needed to meet with Steelfist. He received a reply in return, informing him that he should bring Lord Black to Steelfist's office as the Account Manager was waiting for him. The guard replaced the tube in the wall, closed the panel and led Sirius to Steelfist's office.

Once Steelfist and Sirius were alone in the office, Sirius began to bow but Steelfist stopped him. "Lord Black, you and I do not need the formality when we are alone. That is predominantly to impress smaller minded folk, or required by law or treaty. If for no other reason, you and I both have a responsibility to uphold to the same outstanding young man, do we not?" he asked rhetorically.

"Then please call me Sirius. I really only parade Lord Black around when the title is required," Sirius said.

"Thank you for that, Sirius. Now, how may I be of assistance to you today?" Steelfist asked.

"I need to make some changes to the membership of my family as well as update my will," Sirius explained.

"A wise decision in these troubling and troubled times. The will is a trivial matter, unless you are going to be bequeathing your Lordship to one not in the normal line of succession. For that, you would need Harry's permission. As to the family membership, what did you have in mind?"

Sirius explained what he wanted to do. "There are three changes I wish to make. My cousin, Bellatrix Tanziana Lestrange is currently a member of the House of Black. As Lord Black, I want her marriage dissolved, her dowry returned and then I want her disowned from the family for violating the vassal oath to House Potter by attacking members of an entreated House; specifically Franklin Tybalt Longbottom and Alice Elizabeth Prewitt-Longbottom. Failing using that as an argument, she freely and willingly took Voldemort's dark mark, in clear violation of the House of Black's vassal oath," Sirius said.

"This can be done, especially considering there is more than ample just cause for doing so," Steelfist said.

"The second change is more challenging. My cousin, Narcissa Renee Malfoy, is more difficult. While she seems to believe the pureblood dogma, I believe she is more devoted to her son than to the pureblood rhetoric. I would like her and her son to prove, if necessary monthly, that they are not marked by Voldemort. Should either be marked, they are to be treated as Bellatrix; a traitor to House Black," Sirius explained.

"I see no difficulties with this," Steelfist said.

Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment. "When she is here to be inspected, she is also to be offered an annulment of her marriage and protection for both her and her son from Voldemort, provided Gringotts can provide her sanctuary until the renovation efforts at Black Island have been completed."

"I see no difficulties with this either," Steelfist said.

"The third change is my cousin, Andromeda Evelyn Tonks. She was disowned by my father for marrying a muggle-born wizard, Theodore Jeffrey Tonks. I would like to reinstate her into the House of Black. Should she choose to accept, she is to be given a dowry of fifty thousand galleons and an appropriately-sized manor, bought or built at the location of her choosing. I know James took care of Nymphadora as far as education and the like, but since the will had not been read until June, I would surmise her parents paid for her Hogwarts years. Regardless, I want them taken care of, Steelfist. In some respects, Andromeda is the only decent family I have left," Sirius said sadly.

"I shall have a witch from Gringotts notify Andromeda today, if that is acceptable, to determine her desire," Steelfist said.

Sirius then asked, "With regard to the will, do I need Harry's permission if the person to whom I am bequeathing the Lordship to is Harry himself?"

Steelfist smiled then nodded. "Yes, you would most definitely need Harry's permission for that. He may have someone else he wishes to be Lord when you pass, or he may want the line to die out. Either way, I am sure you could convince him of what you wish to do with the line. Perhaps letting him know the next person in line after yourself is Lucius Malfoy might turn the tide in your direction," Steelfist said with a calculating grin.

A chime sounded, causing both to look up. "It appears you may have an opportunity to speak with Harry sooner than you thought. He is on his way here looking for you, ostensibly to go to lunch," Steelfist said.

"How do you know that from the chime?" Sirius asked in disbelief.

"Trivial, Lord Black. There are only three people whose presence or activity can cause that chime to sound and it is nearing noon. Since Harry did not have breakfast, I imagine both he and his party are hungry and in search of your company and food," Steelfist explained. "While we may seem chaotic, we really are extremely logical beings."

Sirius was interrupted from responding by a knock at the door. "Come," Steelfist called out.

One of the guards from the protective detail opened the door and stepped aside to let Harry in. "Sirius! There you are! Everyone is famished. How does The Leaky Cauldron sound for lunch?" Harry asked.

Sirius looked over at Steelfist, who merely smirked, then back at Harry. "Sounds wonderful, Pup. Lead on!"

Harry turned to Steelfist, "Would you like to join us as well? More's the merrier!" Harry exclaimed.

"Thank you, Harry, but I have some work I need to finish and I am afraid The Leaky Cauldron might never be the same were I to dine there," Steelfist said with a smile, _Because I would burn it to the ground unless it was filled with wizards such as yourself, My Friend,_ he thought.

Harry nodded, leading Sirius out of the office. Sirius turned back to Steelfist before closing the door, "Thank you, Steelfist," Sirius said, then looking out the door at Harry and back to Steelfist, "for everything."

Steelfist nodded as the door closed. "Thank you, too, Lord Sirius Black," he said to the now closed door. He then removed a piece of parchment from his desk and called for one of his assistants. The restructuring of the House of Black would begin today.

-oOoOo-

Lucius Malfoy was on a mission. He had already identified his target and had received an owl this morning informing him she would be in Diagon Alley tomorrow morning. Wednesdays were always good for mischief.

-oOoOo-

Ginevra Molly Weasley was on her way to Diagon Alley today. In her dreams the previous night, Harry Potter had ridden down the alley on a silver pegasus dressed in plate armour. The moment he saw her, he landed, dismounted, ran to her and fell to his knees, professing his undying love for her and his desire to marry her. She, of course, accepted his gallantry and the two of them rode off together on the fabled mount to Potter Manor, where he ensconced her as his precious bride, with a wedding held before all of magical Britain. Nowhere in her dream was the controlling mother, hen-pecked father, aloof older brothers, bossy older brother, pranking older brothers or idiot older brother. It was mostly her idiot older brother who was getting on her nerves at that moment. They were at Flourish and Blotts, where Gilderoy Lockhart was autographing copies of his Defence Against the Dark Arts books. Her mother was fretting with her hair, attempting to make it look less like an unkempt bird's nest as they were now third in line to get her book, Idiot's book and Pranksters' books signed. This was all well and good except Idiot wouldn't shut his mouth.

"I'm telling you they're filled with rubbish. They're like those Velvet Vixen books Mum is always reading. Look here. 'When I wrestled the werewolf to the ground, it finally realised I was the stronger of the two of us and surrendered. I then cast a powerful spell, curing him of his lycanthropic infection'. Utter rubbish," he said loudly enough for nearly everyone in the shop to hear him.

She had just set her book down to have it signed when a silence descended at the front of the store and moved like a wave all the way back to the signing table. She looked in the direction of the entrance, hopping up and down to see over the crowd, and there he was. _He has not only come to Diagon Alley today, he searched for me_! she thought. _But wait. Who were the three girls with him? Hopefully they were with the other boy who walked in with them. Why are two of them holding his hands?_ She pouted. _This is unacceptable. He is supposed to be with me! Mum always said so! _ There seemed to be a struggle going on. Lockhart had grabbed hold of Harry and was trying to pull him away from the two girls. She then heard a girl's voice yell out a spell and Gilderoy was suddenly stiff as a board and falling to the ground. She then heard the girl threaten everyone in the store.

"No one touches Our Harry," the brown-haired witch said menacingly.

Ginny believed her too, considering the end of the girl's wand was still glowing, and it was almost as if an amber fire was burning behind her eyes. As she walked closer, out of some deep need to be closer to the boy of her dreams or just the imposing figure of this girl who stood with all the poise of one of the warrior princesses she read about in her 'Learning to Cast' books, she would never know. As she was nearly there, an imposing figure in fine acromantula silk robes stood before her. She looked up as he looked down at her. _He has a pretty face_, she thought, _but there is something in his smile that isn't quite right._ He reached down into her cauldron and removed one of the books, her second-, or more likely fifth-handed transfiguration text. A cruel sneer came to his face as he looked from her to her father.

"You know, Arthur, I've always said one shouldn't have more children than one can afford, yet you and your," the man's voice changed to communicate his disgust, "wife," before changing back again, "continued to pop them out until you can no longer care for them properly," he said, dumping the book back into her cauldron without even looking at her again. "I must say, you certainly give Pureblood Wizarding Families a foul name with your boorish breeding habits," the sneer in full force on his face. It was at that point her father practically leapt at the man, his anger exceeding his reason. The man stepped aside and let her father fall to the ground, having missed his target. At that point the aurors entered the shop, noting her father was incoherently sputtering and angrily pushing himself up from the floor, looking for the target of his aggression. The sneering man, as she now thought of him, took hold of a boy who was clearly his son, she could tell, by his appearance and his sneer and, making a parting disparaging comment about her father, left the shop.

Harry was helping her father up, which gave her an opportunity to look at the two girls who had been holding his hands previously.

_The brown-haired one,_ she thought, _is fairly plain until she smiles. Then she has those ridiculously cute dimples._ She then looked at the other one. _Blond hair, gray eyes, perfect teeth. WAIT! It can't be..._ she thought. "LUNA!" she exclaimed.

Luna looked over at the shout, her wand leaping into her hand and pointing at the girl who seemed on the verge of pouncing on her. Hermione also turned and had her wand trained on the red-headed girl slightly faster than Luna, although most likely faster as her wand was already out.

Luna put her hand on the brown-haired girl's wand and forced it downward. "Hi Ginny!" she exclaimed. She then turned to the brown-haired girl. "Hermione, this is Ginevra Weasley, and she was my only friend before I met you and Harry," Luna said.

"That's her! That's the little witch!" Gilderoy Lockhart said, spitting as he spoke in anger, pointing at Hermione with two aurors behind him, likely having just removed whatever spell it was this Hermione girl had cast on him. She looked back at where Hermione and Luna had been standing and they weren't there. She hadn't seen them move, but they were now standing so their wands were a hair's breadth away from Lockhart's nose, both wand tips glowing with barely-restrained power.

"You assault our person physically, you then assault our friend physically, attempting to pull him away from us, you aren't even capable of removing a spell from yourself that is taught in second year and then you dare endanger the lives of aurors by making false accusations at us? How dare you!" Luna exclaimed angrily.

"Bloody Loony she is," Ron said loudly and from far too close.

Hermione wheeled on him, her wand leaping across Ginny's eyes, held lengthwise just a hand away, so close she could easily see the grain of the wood, pointed right at Ron's head. "Ronald! Bilius! Weasley! You shall apologise to Lady Lovegood immediately or I will pluck your eyes out and ram them down your throat so I no longer have to listen to your useless voice berating your betters!" Hermione shouted, reminding Ginny all too much of her mother.

Ron's eyes began tearing up in fear as he let out a subdued, "Sor... sor... sor... sorry," before hiding behind their mother.

Harry, having helped Arthur stand again took in the scene of his wives holding wands on people who had no idea how close their demise was if his girls weren't so restrained. He walked up to the two of them, wrapped an arm around each of their waists and softly kissed them on their cheeks. "Girls. All the foolish people have realised they've made a mistake," he said to them, then his eyes pinned Lockhart to the wall as his voice became a growl, "Haven't they, Professor Lockhart," he said menacingly.

Lockhart began back-pedalling, "Quite an impressive show of power, Miss. If I could give you house points at the moment, I would do so. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to be elsewhere," he said, turning and walking quickly towards the back room of the shop with all the grace one can when looking over one's shoulder in fear every three steps.

"Now, let us try to continue our shopping without any further silliness, shall we?" Harry said. He then noticed the girl staring at him and remembered her from the train platform last year. "Hello again, Ginny. Are you starting Hogwarts this year?" he asked.

Ginny could only nod mutely. Here was her hero, not two metres away, holding on to two girls far too familiarly for her taste.

"Well good luck then. We hope to see you in Gryffindor," Harry said, then led the three girls and the other boy out of the shop.

It wasn't until the door closed that she realised aloud, "He spoke to me." The dreamy smile she had on her face would last another few moments, fading when her mother erupted into a diatribe against Luna's friend Hermione.

-oOoOo-


	13. Girl Talk,Goblin Talk,Dinner and Showers

-o-AN-o-  
>Thanks again to Claire and Gracee for the plot hole patching and to texan-muggle for the final proofreading.<br>-o-AN-o-

-oOoOo-

"But Harry, I didn't even get my books!" Hermione complained loudly. "That idiot grabbed you and there was no way I was letting anyone drag you away from Luna and me!"

Harry stopped a moment and turned to look Hermione in the eyes. "Mione, you will get your books, I promise. We'll just ask the Concierge at Gringotts to have them delivered to us, as we should have done in the first place," Harry explained, then leaned in and kissed her gently on the lips. He pulled away from the kiss before she could even open her eyes again.

When she did open her eyes again, Harry was just pulling away from having given Luna a similar kiss, though Luna seemed to recover more quickly.

"I would much rather do this than shop for books," Luna said dreamily.

Susan took the opportunity to surprise Neville by briefly kissing him on the lips as well. "What was that for?" he asked.

"For being you," Susan said, a mysterious little smile on her lips.

Hermione looked thoughtfully at Luna, then switched from Harry's arm to Luna's other arm. She leaned down and gently, tentatively kissed Luna on the lips, closing her eyes as she did so. Luna, too closed her eyes. Although it was very chaste, both girls felt it had the same meaning as their kisses from Harry.

When the kiss ended, Hermione looked up to see Dan and Emma were both looking at the trio with some concern.

Harry looked at Hermione and followed her gaze. "Is something wrong Mum? Dad?" he asked in concern.

The two adults focused on Harry for a moment, nervous expressions on their faces. "Not wrong exactly, Son," Dan said, closing the gap between him and the trio. He then leaned down to Harry and whispered, "This isn't exactly an ideal location to discuss our concerns with the three of you."

Harry nodded.

The group of seven wandered down the alley to Fortescue's. Florean was, as usual, serving up his frozen treats personally, hand scooping the flavoured creams and ices from their drums. It being a fairly busy day, two of his assistants were helping with the serving and clearing of tables.

Florean looked over and saw the group. "Alicia, take over here for a few minutes, please. I see some friends," he said. The girl traded places with him and he walked over to greet them. He sat them outside at a table. "Greetings, one and all," he said with a jovial smile, but as he held Luna's chair out for her, Luna turned and hugged him.

"Thank you for being Daddy's best friend, Mister Fortescue. He spoke of you often and wished he could see you more frequently. I hope to see you tomorrow at Gringotts," Luna said and pulled away.

"I would be there, Miss, if for no other reason than to provide you comfort," Florean said, a tear in his eye. He stood up and helped Luna to sit and scoot in. He also noted that Luna was sitting between her two friends and had brought two more, along with the two muggle adults Xeno had brought with him. "What can I get all of you?" he asked.

After they placed their orders, they quietly discussed their upcoming classes, and various other topics. Susan was sitting next to Hermione and gently touched her bare knee to get her attention, then whispered in her ear, "So what's it like?" she asked.

Hermione turned her head and whispered in her ear, "What's what like?" she whispered back.

"You know... kissing..." Susan whispered, a slightly pink hue rising to her cheeks.

"We're still practising how best to do it, but Harry is coming along quite well," Hermione whispered with a smile.

"No, Silly. How is it to kiss another girl? It looked amazing," Susan whispered, the blush becoming more pronounced. She squeezed Neville's hand in reassurance. Neville squeezed her hand back.

Hermione turned her head to Luna and whispered, "Susan wants to know what kissing a girl is like. What should I tell her?" she asked.

Luna turned her head and whispered to Hermione, "Tell her to come to the loo with us."

Hermione turned her head back to Susan, "Girls' meeting in the loo."

Susan nodded as Hermione said, "I need to go powder my nose."

Luna looked at Hermione quizzically. "What kind of powder do you use?" she asked in confusion, causing Dan to snort chocolate milkshake out his nose and Emma to laugh aloud.

Hermione leaned over and whispered, "That is a muggle expression for needing to use the loo."

Luna looked at Hermione in doubt, "Are you sure?"

Hermione stood, clasping both Luna's and Susan's hands. "Come along," she said.

Dan watched as the three girls entered the loo, making certain they got there without issue.

Neville moved around the table to Harry, "Why do girls do that? Always going as a group to do whatever it is they do?" he asked.

Dan chose to answer the question, "It gives them time to talk girl topics without the boys listening in. I really prefer it that way, as I don't want to know which mascara or foundation works best for the colour of their skin." He was thinking about all the other things girls talked about and didn't want to repeat them.

The two boys began chatting about Quidditch and began explaining the rules to Dan, who became quite interested in the conversation, though constantly looked at the door to the ladies' loo to watch for the girls coming out.

-oOoOo-

Susan was on edge with excitement. She had been wanting to talk to these two alone ever since she had watched Hermione and Luna kiss. The moment the door closed, Susan looked around, noticing no one else was inside. "So what is it like to kiss a girl?" she asked.

Hermione was about to explain when Luna whispered in her ear. Hermione reluctantly nodded. Susan was about to ask what was going on when Luna walked up to her, took one of Susan's hands in her hand then reached up and pulled the older girl into a kiss. Luna concentrated on Susan's hand, how it felt soft and smooth, _almost as soft and smooth as Hermione's tummy_, she thought. She found Susan's magic, a smaller river her waterfall fell through. She slowly pushed her magic towards Susan and merged the two magics together. Luna could feel Susan wrapping her other arm around Luna and pulling her in tighter. Luna pushed her magic into Susan's more, causing the older girl to moan into the kiss. Luna was going to push a bit more in, but decided she wanted to do that with Hermione first, so she slowly lowered the merging until once more it was just a trickle and pulled out of the kiss and then extricated herself from the older girl's embrace.

-oOoOo-

Susan was unsure of what to expect when Luna took her hand then reached up and drew her into a kiss. She closed her eyes at the sense of feeling soft, gentle lips engaged with her own. She opened her mouth to protest and that was all the invitation Luna needed. She felt Luna's tongue come past the threshold of her lips and run around her tongue several times. As she opened her mouth, she could feel a soft, warm breeze flow across every hair on her body, swaying it about. Where the warm breeze had been flowing, the light pressure of smooth, pliable fingertips running over every inch of her body; even in places she had not yet explored this way. She began to tingle as the sensation now felt like warm oil was running slowly over her while the fingers continued their ministrations. Just as gradually as the sensations grew, they began to fade, until only a slight tingling was left. That too faded. She opened her eyes and noticed Luna was standing back next to Hermione and both of them were looking at her.

"And that is what its like to kiss a girl," Hermione said.

"Wow! Just wow!" Susan exclaimed then squealed. She blushed and wrapped her arms around herself, swooning in the memory of the kiss.

-oOoOo-

Luna felt she needed to explain about the magical hugging. "Susan?" she asked.

Susan was doing slow turns, a silly grin on her face, imagining what it was going to be like kissing her friend.

"Susan?" Luna asked again.

Susan closed her eyes and in her minds eye kissed Hannah and imagined the warmth blowing across her.

"SUSAN!" Hermione shouted.

Susan opened her eyes in shock and looked at Hermione. "Yes?" she asked fearfully.

"Susan, I need to explain something to you. What you felt was something Harry taught us how to do. It might take a few hours to teach you how to do this, but if you're willing to learn it, Hermione and I are willing to teach it to you," Luna said, "but it has to be kept secret. We were planning to ask Harry if it was acceptable to him for one of us to teach it to Neville, but if we taught it to you, we could have you teach it to Neville."

Susan looked at Hermione and Luna in shock, "You mean to tell me Harry taught you to kiss like that?"

"Yes," Hermione responded, "and he gives the best kisses!" she exclaimed, closing her eyes, remembering the first time Harry hugged her and made her feel really good. She shuddered in the memory of the pleasure then opened her eyes.

"Okay! That's it! Neville is learning how to do this kissing thing!" Susan exclaimed, determination in her voice.

Hermione looked at the door, "We should do our business and get going or Mum will come in after us."

The three girls agreed, used the facilities then left as a group.

-oOoOo-

Emma was just about to get up and find out what was keeping the girls when the door to the loo opened and the girls came out giggling, although Susan and Hermione were both blushing at whatever it was Luna was talking about.

Dan, too, breathed a sigh of relief when the girls walked out, apparently unharmed. "Here they come," he said and watched as Harry and Neville both stood and turned. Dan was watching the boys reactions. While Neville looked like he had just jumped into an ice cold lake in the middle of Winter, Harry looked as if the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. He looked over at Emma, who in turn looked at Dan. The two of them smiled at one another, shook their heads and then looked back at the three children who would, forever, be theirs.

-oOoOo-

When the seven of them entered the lobby, the tension could be cut with a knife. Amelia was waiting in the lobby of Gringotts with what seemed like a platoon of aurors. The look of relief on her face when she saw Susan was clear. That the aurors were matched by two platoons of Goblins, kitted out with full plate mail armour, swords in scabbards and quarter staffs made the aurors think twice about pulling their wands.

Amelia rushed across the lobby to embrace Susan when several of her aurors intervened, including Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"Madam Bones, you of all people know we need to verify their identity before you get yourself killed in the lobby of Gringotts in front of forty aurors and at least twice that many Gringotts security personnel," Shacklebolt said quietly to his director.

Five Goblins approached Harry's group, Steelfist amongst them. "Lord Potter, there was an incident today in the Alley and Madam Bones' niece was apparently seen there. Since we had no reason to believe you and the members of your party were in any danger, we opted to wait for you here until you returned, since we knew you to be safe," Steelfist said.

Harry looked at a still-worried Amelia then turned to Steelfist, "I understand. Were I told one of my loved ones was in similar circumstance I, too, would be concerned."

Steelfist faced Harry and bowed down low, closing his eyes, holding his arms out and splaying his fingers. Gasps could be heard from some of the aurors. Never in their life had a Goblin done this to a wizard. When Steelfist completed his count of ten and stood again, Harry returned the bow, his eyes closed, arms out and fingers splayed. More gasps as never had most of these aurors treated a goblin as an equal, much less seen or heard of a Lord do so. Harry finished his count of ten and stood once more.

"Senior Account Manager Steelfist, please do what you feel is necessary to my party to ensure the safety of Madam Bones, these fine aurors, these impeccable members of Gringotts Security and all other persons in this branch. Should you find any amongst us who are not who they appear to be, they should be made an example to all people," Harry said, certain every member of his party were who they claimed and appeared to be.

Steelfist waved to Shacklebolt with a smile.

Shacklebolt stepped forward, opened the pouch on his belt and removed an enormous emerald and held it to Harry's chest. He then briefly incanted a spell, causing the emerald to begin glowing, and said in a demanding voice, "What is your name?"

Harry felt a magic in the crystal attempting to invade his own magic. While this did not feel like malicious magic, it also did not feel as if it were friendly. It poked and prodded at his magic, attempting to break in somehow. Harry's magic held firm. The emerald began glowing brighter and brighter. Harry then answered the question, "I am Harry James Potter, Lord of House Potter."

Harry could feel a tendril of his magic reach out as he spoke. The tendril appeared to grasp the invading magic and slap it away. Although he had not done this consciously, he was somewhat amused and shocked at the tangible results of the tendril's actions.

Shacklebolt, whose hand was nearly glued to the emerald by the magic of the ritual, was casually slid backwards across the lobby, making the lobby appear to be made from ice and Shacklebolt to be skating backwards.

Almost as one, the aurors began drawing their wands. The Goblins drew their swords.

Amelia practically screamed, "AURORS! STAND DOWN!"

"_STOP!_" an authoritative voice called from across the lobby in Gobbledygook, "_Guards, return your weapons to their scabbards, for you draw your swords on those who would protect a Friend of The People,_" the voice bellowed.

Although the aurors knew there was no quicker way a wizard had found to die than to draw a wand inside Gringotts, they had believed their fellow auror was in danger. They now all realised they had almost forfeited their lives. As one, they returned the half-drawn wands to their holsters.

In twos and threes, the Goblins returned their swords to their scabbards and then knelt. Steelfist looked across the lobby to see who had spoken and he, too, knelt.

Walking across the lobby were three distinguished looking Goblins, one of which Harry recognized as Elector Ironclaw.

As Ironclaw and the other two goblins stopped two metres away, Harry closed his eyes, bowed deeply, spread his arms, and splayed his fingers. After a count of ten, he stood up and looked into the faces of three smiling Goblins. Much to his surprise, all three goblins took a step so they were further apart, with Elector Ironclaw taking a step back and, as one, they all returned his bow in kind.

The eldest, most richly-dressed Goblin looked at Harry. "You do Wizardkind proud and I am glad the tales I have heard about you are well-founded. Tell me, Lord Potter. What would you do if someone were to harm a member of Gringotts security in this lobby at this moment?"

Harry looked hard at the old Goblin, "I would kill them as an enemy of The People and The Crown," he responded, anger in his voice.

"So you would, with full knowledge of the repercussions under treaty, draw your wand to eliminate the threat even though it is certain death for you," the old Goblin asked.

"I would not have drawn my wand, Sir. Had I needed to, I would rather die knowing I did the right thing, than live and let a murderer escape justice and an enemy of The People and The Crown live to see another day with another opportunity to commit harm," Harry responded hotly.

The oldest Goblin turned to Elector Ironclaw and the other, "I like him even more having met him," then turned back to Harry.

"Lord Potter, I am Guilder Gringott. This distinguished Goblin," Gringott gestured to the other Goblin, "is Branch Manager Ragnok. You already have been introduced to Elector Ironclaw," he said, gesturing to Ironclaw. "I knew your father, a nice boy but prone to fits of passion, much like your grandfather and great-grandfather. I am glad to know you would be willing to die for a Goblin. You have the passion of your ancestors and the courage to carry out your word. Were you not already my friend, I would make you so today." Gringott reached his hand out. Harry took hold of Gringott's wrist, as he had been taught to do.

This was then repeated with Ragnok and Ironclaw.

Gringott then looked at Shacklebolt. "Young man, you may not realise this, but we Goblins knew none of this party were using your polyjuice potion or under the imperius curse. Had either of these been employed on this group, they would have been arrested the moment it was certain they could not escape through the doors. We have wards in place which prevent such silliness. I believe Senior Account Manager Steelfist was trying to make a point," Gringott said, then turned to Amelia. "Madam Bones, please feel free to move closer to your niece. You both look as if the embrace would do you well," he said to her.

Amelia rushed forward and engulfed Susan in a hug, which was just as fervently returned. "I was so worried about you," Amelia said.

Susan revelled in the warmth and affection of the hug for a few moments before she looked up at her Auntie Amelia. "I was with Harry, Auntie. You shouldn't worry about anyone who is with him," she said, loud enough for it to echo off the ceiling of the lobby, causing the three elder Goblins to laugh.

"What was this incident you speak of, Gentlemen?" Emma asked, causing some of the Goblin guards to bristle at her seeming lack of respect and her overly-familiar attitude.

This was quickly silenced by an angry, echoing whisper of Gobbledygook from Gringott.

"First, dear lady, my sincerest apologies for that display. Many of our security force are not as familiar with all those in the normal world and the magical world who are Friends of The People. I merely had to remind them that both you and your husband fall into this category. As to your question, apparently there was some type of altercation between a wizard of questionable repute and some hitherto unknown dark wizard. Said dark wizard was accompanied by two immensely powerful dark witches, one of whom cast a spell over him which befuddled him and caused him to fall to the ground. When he managed to lift the ancient, dark curse placed upon him by the dark witch, the aurors arrived on the scene. This dark witch then cast an ever-lasting crying curse on a young boy, threatened the aurors and everyone in the shop with a horrible death and apparated out of the alley," Gringott said, managing to complete the story before laughing aloud. As he had been speaking, Ragnok and Ironclaw had made valiant attempts at hiding their chuckles.

Emma asked a clarifying question, "Why are you laughing? I thought dark wizards were evil."

"Oh, dark wizards can certainly be evil. It just happens," Ironclaw explained, "that this dark wizard happens to be our very own Lord Potter and the evil dark witch doing all of the casting of dark spells was your eldest daughter," he said.

"That's preposterous!" Emma exclaimed, "Neither of them are dark or evil," she then looked at Harry and Hermione, each holding one of Luna's hands now, "are you?" she asked, in a humorous fashion.

Hermione harrumphed, "Lockhart is just a liar."

Guilder Gringott and Branch Manager Ragnok were laughing, which broke the ice and allowed all of the Goblins and aurors present to lose their composure at the ludicrous tale held up against the people about whom it was told.

Once order was restored once more, Amelia spoke up. "While this has been a most pleasant experience and an honour to be in such legendary company, I fear I must take my niece and her friend back home," she said, meaning Susan and Neville. The three elder Goblins bowed to Amelia, who returned the bow and took Susan and Neville from the bank, surrounded by all of the aurors.

Once the aurors left and the doors closed, the security Goblins began filing out before they halted as requested by Harry with a shouted, "Wait!"

The guards stopped and looked at the wizard their elders treated as an equal.

Harry stood tall and spoke from his heart, "When I watched as all of you drew your swords, it was one of the most powerful things I have seen. Were I to need skill with a blade, or the strength of a true warrior, I would look no further for training than to you here in this room. I would tell you each and every one, one day I hope I am skilled enough that you would be as willing to have me watch your back as I am willing to have any of you watch my back this day." He then bowed deeply to the gathered Goblins, closing his eyes, holding his arms out and splaying his fingers. One of the older guards walked forward to Harry and waited until he stood once more.

"I have fought in two wars against wizardkind. My son was lost in the second of those wars when the wizards slaughtered their prisoners. I knew in that moment wizards had no honour," he said, unfastening his belt. "I am glad to know, on this last day of my duties as a guard, that there is at least one wizard left with honour and courage." He wrapped the belt around the scabbard and handed it to Harry. "Today, my son would have been the recipient of my family sword. When you wish to learn to use this, ask for Silentwalker and I shall train you in the art of its use." He then extended his arm.

Harry reached out and took Silentwalker's wrist in his hand.

"You may be but a young boy today, Lord Potter, but do not allow others to tell you what you can and cannot do. Define your life in who you are and what you do and not in the small minds of others who cannot or will not see the greatness within you," Silentwalker said before turning and leaving the lobby.

Harry was too stunned to respond. He looked at the sword then watched the warrior who gave it to him walk away.

All of the guards left, having much to think about. When it was just Harry's group and the three elder Goblins left, Gringott spoke again. "Well strap it around your waist, Lord Potter."

Harry responded, "But I don't know how to use it, Sir."

Gringott chuckled, "You will need to get used to the weight, as well as acclimated to the belt and scabbard so they become invisible when you want them to be. Considering you will be leaving for school in less than a week, now is an excellent time to begin training that piece of you."

Harry strapped the belt around his waist under his over-cloak and found the hilt of the sword seemed to be right where he wanted to rest his left hand.

"Now just concentrate on wanting the belt, scabbard and sword to disappear," Gringott said.

Harry placed his hand on the hilt of the sword and could almost hear it singing to him. Within moments, the belt, scabbard and sword disappeared from around his waist, much to the surprise of Gringott and Ragnok and to the delight of Ironclaw.

Gringott and Ragnok looked at Ironclaw in disgust, each handing him a small sack. Ragnok looked at Harry then at Ironclaw. "That's just incomprehensible, you know," he said.

"Yes, I know. Every time Steelfist tells me something new, I have to remind myself that, like the sun or the tides, Harry just is," Ironclaw said with a grin.

"Well, we should be letting these young people get on with their lives. Lord Potter, may the gold of our mutual enemies fall at your feet," Gringott said, the three Goblins bowing in respect.

"And may the grandchildren of our mutual enemies consider all people as equals," Harry said, returning the bow.

Even Ironclaw showed his surprise at the unusual farewell. Harry saw the look on all three Goblins' faces, having never seen a Goblin show surprise and not knowing that is what it was, explained, "Lord Black has been teaching me about the reasons for the all-too-many Goblin and Wizarding Wars and most, if not all, of them have been over the attitude that wizards are somehow better than Goblins. I want to ensure they understand Goblins, House Elves and others are different, not inferior."

Ironclaw extended his hand, which Harry matched and gripped Ironclaw's wrist. "Be well," Ironclaw said. Harry nodded.

Ragnok extended his hand as well and, as Harry gripped his wrist, Ragnok said, "Remain constantly vigilant." Harry nodded.

Gringott extended his hand too and, as Harry gripped his wrist, Gringott said, "Beget multitudes." Harry looked quizzically at him but nodded. The three Goblins left the lobby.

As Harry turned around, Luna and Hermione were smiling shyly and blushing, Emma was frowning and Dan looked like he had been punched hard in the stomach. "What's wrong?" Harry asked.

-oOoOo-

They portkeyed back to the Granger home early enough for Harry to make dinner. Emma took the opportunity to take the girls upstairs for a chat while Dan spoke with Harry.

Harry was placing the chicken breasts on the baking sheet and cutting the skin back. Dan was watching him do this as he had not seen Emma do this before. Harry then put a teaspoon of apricot jelly, a pinch of rosemary, a couple of lavender leaves and some pepper on the breast meat then folded the skin back over the mixture. He then brushed some of the bacon fat onto the skin and sprinkled it with salt and pepper. He then set the oven at 180C and began washing and cubing the potatoes and placed them in a pot on high heat with salted water.

"Harry, will it bother you if we talk while you're making dinner?" Dan asked.

"No, Dad. Uncle Vernon used to yell at me all the time when I made meals, so having a quiet conversation where I am actually encouraged to speak will be quite a treat," Harry said, adding a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to the potato water.

Dan was used to the recollections and comparisons Harry used when they spoke so, while still being somewhat shocked and angered by the Dursleys' treatment of Harry, he had gotten very good at immediately inserting the fate of Vernon Dursley.

"Son, what do you think of being married to Luna and Hermione?" Dan asked carefully.

Harry stopped chopping the broccoli and looked up at Dan. "Once I found out the girls were thrilled with the idea, I feel somewhat less guilty about it, but I still think they should have had some choice in the matter," he explained.

"But are you happy in knowing that Luna and Hermione will be with you for as long as you live?" Dan asked.

Harry smiled shyly, "I'm really happy about that, Dad. They are both so wonderful." Harry got a far-off look.

Dan was concerned about what Harry was thinking about so asked him.

"I was just thinking about how nice it is to feel them hug me and how nice it is to wake up seeing two incredibly pretty girls every morning," Harry said, then finished chopping the broccoli and loading it into the steamer. He placed a pat of butter on the broccoli and put the lid on it and turned the burner to a medium heat.

Dan waited until Harry was done. "Son, what I am worried about is you or one of the girls wanting to take your relationship further than Mum or I are comfortable with. Even though you have the means to do anything you want in your life, I want to make sure you have the freedom and an opportunity to have a childhood before you begin having children of your own. What I am trying to say is Mum and I would prefer you waiting until all three of you are older to have intercourse," Dan said, his voice strained at the end.

Harry looked shocked. "Dad, I... that is... I don't think I am ready for that by a long ways. I don't know how Luna and Hermione feel about it, but I think I would ask both you and Mum first before I was ready to do that. I wouldn't want to hurt either of them and I wouldn't want to be disrespectful of you and Mum. I want you to be proud of me. It means a lot to me, Dad," Harry said, looking at Dan intensely. He then looked down for a moment and looked up, his eyes softer. "Dad," he began, "I hear you tell Mum that you love her and I heard Hermione and Luna say 'Love' to one another. How do you... that is... how do I know if I love someone or not?" Harry asked.

"Well," Dan began and paused a moment, "let me ask you, Harry. What do you think love is?"

"I don't know," Harry said, looking away, "I think my parents loved me. I know you and Mum love one another and you both love Hermione."

"And we both love you too, Son," Dan said reassuringly.

Harry looked at him intensely again. "But how... I mean... How do you know?"

"Harry, what can you tell me about Hermione? Does she have any habits or quirks you can recall?" Dan asked.

"You mean like the way she carries a pen and paper with her wherever she goes in case she needs to make a list?" Harry asked.

"Exactly. What else?" Dan prompted.

"When she eats she like to assemble a little bit of everything from the plate to get a complete mixture of the flavours, while Luna likes to eat one thing at a time until its gone. You like to get at least two things, but never more than four flavours at once on your fork, while Mum never takes more than two items on her fork. Hermione likes her tea piping hot with just a dash of cream in it and she hates it stirred, and Luna likes her tea swamped with cream and a spoonful of sugar and stirred until its blended. You seem to prefer black coffee and Mum likes peppermint tea with a dash of cream. Hermione likes cinnamon toothpaste and she always washes her hands before and after brushing her teeth, while Luna likes peppermint toothpaste and she washes her hands once before brushing and twice afterwards. Luna has to reach up to kiss me or Hermione and she always puts her hand on the back of our heads, while Hermione only has to reach up a little to kiss me and both of them close their eyes when they kiss. Both of them like it when I run my fingers through their hair and..." Harry was interrupted as the oven alarm went off. He opened the oven and turned the pan around then closed the oven again. He checked on the broccoli and turned the flame down. He put a lid on the potatoes and set the alarm again.

Dan smiled and asked, "I am fairly certain I already know the answer, Son, but do you care about the girls?"

Harry smiled and nodded, "I would do anything for them, Dad," he then looked down, "I've killed before for Hermione," he said, steel in his voice, "and I would do so again for you, Mum, Hermione, and Luna. When I saw that troll headed towards Hermione about to hit her with that club, I couldn't stand the thought of her not being in my life. I had to do it, Dad!" Harry cried, "I can't lose her. And now I feel the same about you and Mum and Luna," he said.

Dan walked over and pulled Harry into a hug. "It's okay, Son. You did what you had to do to protect Hermione. I think in many ways, that's how you feel about Luna, Mum and me, too. Am I right?" Dan asked, looking down at Harry.

"I would do anything to keep you four safe, Dad," Harry said, his face still buried in Dan's chest.

"And how about when we were in France and that older boy kept trying to get Hermione to walk down the beach with him. I think I know, but how did it make you feel?" Dan asked.

"I wanted him to just go away, especially when he was telling her she looked... well.. sexy. I wanted that to be me, I guess, telling her," Harry said, pulling out of the hug as the alarm went off again.

He opened the oven and turned the pan once more, turned off the burner beneath the broccoli and set the alarm once more.

"I guess it made me angry," Harry said, looking back at Dan.

Dan opened the cupboard and took down a stack of seven plates and placed them in the warmer drawer. "And how did you feel when Luna came up and told him to stop talking to her girlfriend and kissed her?" Dan asked, still amused at the older boy's expression when this happened.

"I was proud of her, I think. I was happy she had the courage to do that and knew part of that came from Hermione and me being her friends awakening that courage in her," Harry said.

"Although I know you would have defended her, I was still happy to see what happened to him when he tried pushing Luna away from Hermione," Dan said, remembering how it had seemed as if Luna was like a brick wall and when the boy had tried pushing her, he had been thrown right out into the water.

"I would likely have done something worse," Harry said, looking down at the floor.

Dan took hold of Harry's chin, causing Harry to look up at him, "Well, we may need to work on that reaction, but, Son, I think you love them. And I think you love Mum and me. I also am sure that you love us in different ways. Your love for Mum and me are the love a child has for a parent. I don't think your love for Hermione and Luna are the love a brother has for his sisters. I think you have the love a boy has for a girl, or in your case, two girls. I honestly believe you love Hermione and Luna as much as they love one another," he explained. Dan heard the bedroom door upstairs open. "I think we're about to be invaded by the girls, and I am sorry I haven't said this enough before, but I love you, Son. I am proud of you. I know your parents are proud of you. I know Hermione and Luna are proud of you. I think, when the three of you are doing goodnight kisses tonight, you need to let the girls know what they mean to you," he said earnestly, then gave Harry another hug.

"Thanks, Dad. I love you," Harry said, looking up at Dan and sounding as if he was testing each word with his mouth as he said them. The oven alarm went off once more and Dan let Harry go. Harry took the chicken out of the oven and placed it on the stove top and completed the remainder of the preparation for dinner, all the while thinking about how freeing it felt to know he loved his family.

-oOoOo-

Emma sat in the bathroom as the girls made their preparation for showering. She had already gotten the water started and their towels and shampoo for them. Luna entered the bathroom skyclad, blushing almost down to her chest and walked into the shower. Hermione came in a few moments later wearing a robe and a slight blush, carrying both her clothes as well as Luna's.

"Why are you blushing, Dear?" Emma asked.

"Um... Luna wanted a kiss," Hermione said.

Emma raised an eyebrow at the answer she received.

"Well, I gave her a kiss," Hermione answered, her blush deepening.

"And?" Emma asked.

"Luna's kisses taste good," Hermione said, quickly dropping her robe and escaping to the safety of the shower.

Emma was about to ask a clarifying question when she stopped herself. _I really don't want to know_, she thought, although something was bothering her about Hermione. It wasn't anything she said. _Maybe something I saw?_ she asked herself.

"Girls, while you're showering, I think its a good time to talk about Harry," she said.

"What do you mean, Auntie Emma?" Luna asked nervously.

"We've talked a bit about this in our kissing lessons, but Harry is a boy and boys feelings can be easily hurt. The fact that Harry is now your husband means his feelings are likely even more sensitive," Emma explained.

"Did we hurt Harry's feelings somehow, Mum?" Hermione asked fearfully, _I don't EVER want to hurt his feelings after how kind he has been to me!_ she thought.

"No, Dear. What I am trying to say, is, as girls, you may develop faster than he will and you may have certain urges before he does and once he gets these same urges, you may push him faster than he is prepared to go. Does that make sense?" Emma asked.

"Hermione, I think she means we may want to have sex before Harry is ready. Is that right, Auntie Emma?" Luna asked.

Emma almost laughed out loud at Hermione's whispered exclamation of, "Luna!"

"That's exactly it, Luna. And I wouldn't want either of you to pressure him into something he isn't ready for. In fact, I would prefer it if you spoke with Dad or me before you decide to go that far with him," Emma said.

"Auntie Emma, I would never want Harry to be uncomfortable with us. Does Harry know to talk to Uncle Dan or you before as well?" Luna asked.

"I think Uncle Dan is having a similar conversation with Harry right now," Emma answered honestly.

"I don't think either Luna or I are ready for that yet at all, Mum. Besides, from what I read this summer, normal methods of contraception don't work for witches and wizards. The body's own magic circumvents them by either purging the body of the chemicals or passing through any physical barriers. There are some spells to use, but the warnings on those say a girl should be at least two years into her cycle before they're cast or they can cause permanent reproductive damage," Hermione said in her professor voice.

_Magic circumvents normal methods of contraception. Lovely. Just lovely. I wonder if Bonnie is available for a chat with these two,_ Emma thought. "Well, I am glad you girls have spent some time thinking about this and don't have any plans to practice this with Harry," she said.

"No, Mum. I want a career before I have children of my own," Hermione said.

"And I want to be out of school before I have any children. I can't take care of a child and my own education at the same time," Luna said.

Emma smiled. "I am truly pleased with both of you and how maturely you're viewing this. I am sure Harry and Dad will be proud of you as well," Emma said.

"Mum, please don't tell Harry. If the topic comes up, we should be the ones to explain it to him. We don't want it to seem like we're keeping secrets from him. It's just really important we tell him the reasons and that we didn't conspire against him or anything. Okay?" Hermione asked.

"Hermione, my child, you impress me more and more each day. That is a reasoned and mature approach and I, too, think that is the best way of handling it. Luna, do you agree?" Emma asked.

"Most definitely. We are his wives, after all," Luna said happily.

"Well, I am glad we had this chat, Girls. I am going to go freshen up before dinner. I love you both," Emma said.

"Love you, Mum," Hermione said.

"Love you, Auntie Emma," Luna said.

Emma left the bathroom and went into the master suite. As the water ran down her face in the shower, she suddenly realised what had been off about Hermione: the bite mark on her shoulder. _Now I REALLY don't want to know,_ she thought and let the water pound on her shoulders to ease her tension.

After the bathroom door closed, Luna leaned against Hermione and relished in the thought of this warm body against her and the warm water washing down both of them. "I'm really sorry about that, Hermione. I hope I didn't hurt you. Your hugs are getting to be as good as Harry's," she said as she slid her hands around Hermione's waist.

Hermione wrapped her arms around Luna and kissed the top of her head. "It only stings a little. Next time, use the pillow. I let you leave a mark this time. Don't do it again or no hugs for a week," Hermione said.

"I'm really sorry. I know a first aid spell that will make it go away," Luna said. "I can use it on you before we get dressed."

"Okay. Turn around and let me wash your hair and your back. Then you can do mine," Hermione said.

The girls finished washing, Luna cast her charm, making the bite mark disappear and the pain to go away. They then got dressed and went downstairs, summoned by the aroma of amazing food.

-oOoOo-


	14. Where There's A Will, There's A Waif

-oOoOo-

Much as Harry and his friends had been the last to enter at the reading of his father's will, Luna, Harry, Hermione, Dan and Emma were the last to enter the room. Seated around the table were many faces Harry did not recognise and some of those he did recognise, he would rather not have had to see until Tuesday on the platform.

Neville was sitting next to Susan, who was sitting next to Hermione. Augusta Longbottom sat next to Neville on his right.

Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were there with their son Draco.

The entire Weasley family was there except Bill and Charlie.

Pansy Parkinson was present along with her parents, a younger girl and a toddler-aged boy.

Steelfist was about to proceed with the reading of the will when Pansy's father stood, anger purpling his face. "I demand these muggles be removed from the room. Their kind are not wanted here during the reading of a pureblood family's reading," he said, the anger on his face echoing in his voice.

Steelfist turned to Parkinson. "Lord Irmgard Wendell Parkinson, much the same way you are named in this will, so are Doctor Daniel Robert Granger and Doctor Emma Gabrielle Granger named within it. Your outburst is uncouth and uncalled for and any other such outbursts against those present or those who have passed shall be deemed an insult by The People. Do you understand?" Steelfist asked mildly.

Pansy's father sat, anger still clear on his face and his actions.

"Good afternoon to you all," Steelfist said to the room at large, standing at a podium at the far end of the table from Luna. "I am Major Account Manager Steelfist. We have gathered today for the reading of the last will and testament of the late Xenophilius Desideratum Lovegood, Lord of House Lovegood. Before we begin today's proceedings are there any comments, concerns or questions?" Steelfist asked.

Draco's father stood. He looked at Luna and said, "We were concerned when our dear cousin was reported slain by murder most foul. We had also been told the Heir, his daughter Luna, had also been slain. We are glad to know the truth that she lives," he said, an oily smile sliding onto his face as he sat again.

When no one spoke for a few moments, Steelfist continued. "With due consideration for the covenants of the treaty of one thousand, eight hundred and forty three, between The People and The Crown as represented by the Ministry of Magic, Gringotts has duly notified all named beneficiaries of the document we will be reading today. Those not in attendance are as follows:"

"William Breckett Weasley, unable to attend due to previous commitments to Gringotts Wizarding Bank."

"Charles Bartemus Weasley, unable to attend due to previous commitments to the Romanian Society for the Protection of Drakes."

"Angelika Juliana Trillas, unable to attend due to previous commitments."

"We shall now commence the reading of the last will and testament of Xenophilius Desideratum Lovegood, the late Lord of House Lovegood," Steelfist said formally.

A large multifaceted crystalline bowl rose from the centre of the table as the lights in the room dimmed. Xenophilius Lovegood appeared life-sized in the centre of the table above the bowl and began speaking.

-oOoOo-

Xenophilius seemed to be looking directly at Luna as he read the will. Luna watched as her father spoke.

"This is the Last Will and Testament of Xenophilius Desideratum Lovegood, Lord of House Lovegood, et alii"

"I, Xenophilius Desideratum Lovegood, Lord of House Lovegood, and lord of all other houses to which I am sworn, being of sound mind, body and magic, do, by my own hand, write this last will and testament, on this day, the second of July in the year one thousand, nine hundred, ninety and two by common reckoning."

"I make the following declarations:"

"I do hereby revoke all prior wills and codicils."

"I have one living child named Luna Selene Lovegood. All references in this will to my child, children, or my issue include Luna Selene Lovegood and any child or children hereafter born to or adopted by me."

"I declare these specific bequests and devices:"

"To Irmgard Wendell Parkinson, Lord of House Parkinson, vassal to House Lovegood, I bequeath thirty sickles, to be deposited in House Parkinson's primary vault at Gringotts. Should you need any assistance determining the intent behind this message, my account manager has a book for you."

Lord Parkinson stood and shouted, "This is an outrage!"

Steelfist paused the reading. "You have something you wish to discuss, Lord Parkinson?" he asked in the same mild tone he had used previously. Parkinson looked at the two Goblin guards standing behind Steelfist, who appeared to be sizing him up for a coffin.

Parkinson sat down.

"I didn't think so," Steelfist said, continuing the reading.

The projected image of Xeno continued.

"To Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, Lord of House Malfoy, vassal to House Lovegood, I bequeath thirty sickles, to be deposited in House Malfoy's primary vault at Gringotts."

Draco looked angry and on the verge of standing. Narcissa grasped his hand, staying the boy from looking more foolish in front of the Goblins. She then relieved him of his wand to prevent him from getting himself killed.

"To Arthur William Weasley and Molly Beatrice Weasley, I bequeath five hundred thousand galleons, to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank and paid into their vault at a rate of fifty thousand galleons per year. You were a good friend, Arthur."

For the first time in living memory, Molly was stunned into silence.

"To William Breckett Weasley, I bequeath twenty-five thousand galleons. Love is simply waiting for the right time."

"To Charles Bartemus Weasley, I bequeath twenty-five thousand galleons. Come home when the time is right."

"To Percival Wallace Weasley, I bequeath ten thousand galleons to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until he attains his majority. Percy, learn to balance your life. You will be a happier man for it."

"To Frederick George Weasley, I bequeath ten thousand galleons to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until he attains his majority or he proves to my account manager he has an endeavour worthy of its investment. Your strength has yet to be tested."

"To George Frederick Weasley, I bequeath ten thousand galleons to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until he attains his majority or he proves to my account manager he has an endeavour worthy of its investment. Frighten not the little children, for they hold the key to your future."

"To Ronald Bilius Weasley, I bequeath ten thousand galleons to be held in trust indefinitely by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until he proves to my account manager he has truly atoned for the behaviour he all too often demonstrates. Insulting my daughter and the Heir to a Founding Family is hardly endearing. Learn to be a true friend before you seek wealth."

"To Ginevra Molly Weasley, I bequeath ten thousand galleons to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until she attains her majority and ten thousand galleons as a dowry to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until she has been married for five years."

"To Angelika Juliana Trillas, a girl of six years old, currently in a location the Goblins can find, I bequeath one hundred thousand galleons to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until she attains her majority and ten thousand galleons as a dowry to be held in trust by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until she has been betrothed. I am certain her guardians shall find her a man worthy of her."

"To a boy becoming a man I would proudly call my own son, Harry James Potter, Lord of House Potter, I bequeath my sword, Bright Song. You will need her before the end. To him I also bequeath the contents of Gringotts London Vault Six Hundred Ninety-Six so that you may surpass your upbringing and be blessed for the person you are within."

"To a girl who is, in my heart, a daughter of great strength and will grow to be a woman of profound wisdom, I leave Hermione Jane Granger copies of all tomes in the libraries of House Lovegood and the libraries of all vassal Houses. Should any Lord of a vassal House fail to comply with the Goblins in this endeavour, their line shall be seized and the Lord or Lady slain as he or she would be in violation of their vassal oath. To her I also bequeath the sum of fifty thousand galleons and the contents of Gringotts London Vault Six Hundred Ninety-Seven. Use it wisely, share it with those you love."

"To a boy who has courage and strength in him still untapped, Neville Franklin Longbottom, I bequeath my staff, Stone Tree. When the last battle is won, plant her where you stood."

"To the desired mundane guardians of my daughter, and a man and woman I wish this life had allowed me more time to become acquainted with, Daniel Robert Granger and Emma Gabrielle Granger, I bequeath one million galleons, the manor known as Love's Hold and my love for the vision and strength you have already demonstrated. Please use Love's Hold to finish the work which Luna, Hermione and Harry have already started with my utmost blessing."

"To a man who has brought untold hours of pleasure and uncountable memories of better times, I bequeath fifty thousand galleons to Florean Clarence Fortescue and the property in Diagon Alley upon which his establishment rests along with the two adjacent properties whose titles are currently held by House Lovegood. Use it to continue to bring happiness, my friend."

The look of love in Xeno's face grew to encompass his entire being as his projection continued.

"To my beloved daughter, Luna Selene Lovegood, my Little Moon who rises in the night and outshines the brightest stars in the heavens, I bequeath all titles and oaths, all chattel, residue and remains of my Estate, after payment of all my just debts, expenses, taxes, administration costs and individual devices and bequests, if any."

The projection of Xeno continued, his face losing its look of adulation.

"With the exception of my child, if any such named beneficiary or member of a class of beneficiaries fails to survive me by thirty days, declines the gift or is no longer in existence, I direct that said beneficiary's share pass equally to the beneficiary's surviving spouse or children. In the event no such survivors exist, the beneficiary's share shall pass, in equal parts, to the children's ward of St. Mungo's and the orphanages of the Crown, to be administered by Gringotts Wizarding Bank."

"In the event my child fails to survive me by thirty days or are no longer in existence, I direct the remains of my Estate to be managed by Gringotts Wizarding Bank until such time that a successor may be located and achieve Lordship."

"I make the following provisions of guardianship:"

"If, at my death, I have any child or children under age of majority and such child or children do not have a living parent, I nominate Daniel Robert Granger and Emma Gabrielle Granger to serve as the legal guardian or guardians of such child or children."

"If these persons are unwilling or unable to serve as guardian, then I nominate Harry James Potter and Hermione Jane Granger to serve as the legal guardian of such child or children."

"If any legal guardian of my child or children should be appointed, I nominate the individual identified above for appointment as guardian and request the Ministry and the Crown to appoint the nominee, grant the guardian custody of the child or children, permit the guardian all statutory and discretionary powers permitted under the laws and treaties of the Ministry and the Crown, including but not limited to changing the residence and domicile of the children to the country where the guardian may then reside, and appoint such individual or individuals as guardian of the estate of such child or children."

"At our specific instruction, any child or children under age of majority shall not be placed with any vassal House. Know that any who would violate this stipulation shall be accursed and shall suffer the enmity and scorn of House Lovegood for the rest of their days."

Xeno then finished the reading.

"Signed, this day, the second of July in the year one thousand, nine hundred, ninety and two by common reckoning, Xenophilius Desideratum Lovegood, Lord of House Lovegood, et alii."

A wizard with scars all over his face and one magic eye appeared above the bowl now, in auror robes.

"Witnessed hereof by Alastor Martin Moody" he said.

A much-changed Albus Dumbledore, standing in robes which softly glowed white then spoke.

"Witnessed hereof by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore"

A man only Steelfist recognised then spoke.

"Witnessed hereof Michael Delver Doolittle, esquire" he said.

Another man only Steelfist recognised spoke.

"Witnessed hereof Michael Bishop Whaite, esquire," he said.

Another man only Steelfist recognised spoke.

"Witnessed hereof William Henry Heer, esquire" he said.

The bowl flared white a moment then became clear once more as the lights in the room returned to full brightness.

-oOoOo-

"This is preposterous! Granting guardianship of a Founding Family Heir to muggles? I object!" Lord Parkinson exclaimed.

"I, too, find I must object to this travesty. Surely we can find a better home than a muggle one for her to live," Lord Malfoy said.

"I will point out that both Mr. and Mrs. Granger are dentists," Steelfist said.

Both Parkinson and Malfoy paled at this information.

"As far as setting aside any provision of the will, I will point out that Lady Luna Selene Lovegood is now regarded as an adult under Ministry Law and that she only requires guardians in the muggle world. The People agree with the will in that there are no people better suited to her guardianship than the Grangers," Steelfist explained.

Florean Fortescue had listened to enough supine cloth containers of manure to know these two Lords had waded in the stuff for years. "Lady Lovegood," he said, addressing Luna, "I know that your father loved you very much and would have wanted you to be as happy and as safe as possible. I cannot think of two safer people to be with than muggle dentists," Florean said.

Luna gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, Lord Fortescue. I hope to see you again before I leave for Hogwarts," she whispered to him.

Florean smiled at her, nodded to the rest of Luna's friends and left.

Both Malfoy and Parkinson were looking at the Granger parents, who were looking at Luna. They looked up at the two Lords and deep frowns were on Dan and Emma's faces.

Malfoy used legilimency on Dan and was utterly terrified at what he saw. Himself. Sitting in a reclined lounge. With metal instruments in his mouth. And Dan looking down at him with an evil smile. With an enormous needle headed towards his jaw. It was the only time in Lucius' experience using legilimency that he had actually experienced pain. And this pain was far worse than the Cruciatus.

Parkinson used legilimency on Emma and he, too, was utterly terrified at what he was seeing. Quite nearly the same experience Malfoy had, only Emma was heading towards his mouth with a saw, not a needle.

Malfoy slumped to the floor, clenching his teeth as tightly as he could, perspiring and looking at Dan in horror, trying to tear his eyes away from the vision that repeated itself but got worse with each repetition.

Parkinson screamed then passed out, clearly the luckier of the two.

Dan continued staring at Malfoy, realising that Malfoy must have done something which allowed him to see what he was thinking. In addition to performing an anaesthetic-free cleaning on the man, he began, in his mind, to perform a root planing then a multiple-quadrant extraction requiring fracturing of the roots.

This caused Malfoy to scream once more, void his bowels and pass out.

"What did you do to my father?" Draco yelled, his wand not in his hand only because his mother had wisely taken it before.

Dan looked at Draco, now thinking about what he would do to this rude, back-stabbing little bastard, on the off-chance the boy used whatever magic his father had used.

Narcissa, however intervened, "Please forgive my son his impertinence, Sir. He is only concerned about his father," she said, looking down at the floor.

Dan looked at Narcissa. "I shall let it pass. This time," Dan said, then looked back at Draco.

Draco turned his back in disgust that his mother would be obsequious to a muggle.

Dan caught his attention, however, "Mr. Malfoy, should you continue your verbal assaults on my daughter or her friends, take note. Your father and his friend merely insulted my wife and me. Insult my daughter or her friends again and what I did to your father will seem like a Sunday picnic by the lake."

Dan then gathered up Emma, the children and invited Augusta, Neville and Susan along with them to leave.

They left the room and were led by a Goblin guard back to Steelfist's office. Ten minutes later, Steelfist entered his office. The moment the door closed fully, Steelfist began laughing so hard he fell to the ground and tears began running from his eyes. It took another ten minutes for him to compose himself enough and get his breath back. Still and yet, every time he looked at Dan he began briefly laughing again.

"What was that about my parents being dentists, exactly, Steelfist?" Hermione asked, somewhat upset. This set Steelfist off again for another few minutes.

When he regained his composure, he saw that, while Luna was smiling, no one else was. Augusta actually had her arms around Susan and Neville, trying to keep them away from Dan and Emma.

"One moment, while I take something to keep my composure," Steelfist said, then sat down at his desk, opened a drawer, pulled out a potion bottle and drank it. He waited a few moments to ensure the potion was in effect before speaking.

"Hermione, when we found out both of your parents were dentists, which was shortly after Harry arrived at St. Mungo's, we researched muggle dentists. We then began a series of articles in the Daily Prophet wherein we described dentists as a muggle cross-breed between dementors and dark lords. Dentists are known to suck the happiness out of people, filling them with an unnaturally strong fear and that dentists were legally allowed by both the magical and muggle governments around the world to use a muggle version of the Cruciatus curse, only the muggle version was much, much worse," Steelfist explained, then giggled for a few moments.

"I can only presume that Lords Malfoy and Parkinson used legilimency on your parents and Dan and Emma must have been thinking about what they would do if they actually got one or the other of them in their dental chair," Steelfist concluded, another giggle escaping him.

"Well, that would certainly explain why they paled when Mum and Dad were described as dentists, but why did Parkinson faint and Malfoy scream, void his bowels and faint?" Harry asked.

"They used legilimency, Harry. They used a magical ability to read minds and Daddy and Mum were likely none too kind with what they were thinking about doing to those two after the horrible things they were saying about Mum and Daddy," Hermione said.

Dan laughed an evil laugh. "I will most definitely have to remember that," Dan said, chilling Augusta to the bone. He noticed Augusta's demeanour. "Don't worry, Madam Longbottom, I would never have any reason to harm you or your family. Malfoy, Parkinson and their ilk, however, will get no mercy from me whatsoever," he explained with his calming-frightened-child smile.

Augusta realised she was holding on to both Neville and Susan quite tightly. She let them go so they could breathe once more and join their friends. "My apologies, Dan and Emma. I, too, read and believed those stories in the Daily Prophet. I shall keep the level of exaggeration a secret, however," she said, shooing Neville and Susan off to go visit with Harry, Hermione and Luna.

"With Daddy's guardianship declaration," Luna said, a lost, little waif look on her face as she looked at Dan and Emma, "does this mean I can call you Mum and Daddy too?" she asked, her eyes filling with tears.

Emma knelt and wrapped the girl in a gentle, loving hug, "If you want to do that, we would be happy for you to do so, Luna Dear."

Luna cried into her shoulder for some minutes. Not for the loss of her father, for he had already told her he would always be close. These were tears of happiness for the family she was now that much closer to being a part of.

Harry was curious at something that puzzled him, "Steelfist, who was the little girl mentioned in Lord Lovegood's will?"

Steelfist frowned. "Yes. Angelika Juliana Trillas. Lord Lovegood said we would be able to find her, and she is somewhat close, although unable to attend due to prior commitments," he said.

"Is she one of our rescued children?" Luna asked, having finished her cry, but was still holding and being held by Emma.

Steelfist looked at Luna and then smiled, "Lady Lovegood, you are brilliant. Would you please call Beltchirp?"

"Beltchirp," Luna said.

The elf appeared and looked at Luna, kneeling before her. "How may Beltchirp serve you, Lady Luna?" he asked.

"Arise, Beltchirp. Do you know where Angelika Juliana Trillas is?" Luna asked.

"She is in lessons at the moment, Lady Luna. She will be back at Potter's Point within the hour," Beltchirp said.

"And how is she doing, Beltchirp?" Luna asked.

"She is doing much better now that she is not at the place she was," Beltchirp said. "Mippy was the one to rescue her from the awful muggles. Mippy felt so bad she took all the children who were there and took the muggle children to Her Majesty's people."

"And the awful muggles?" Dan asked with a growl.

"Are shovelling dragon dung in the deepest dungeons the Goblins have," Beltchirp said with a smile.

"Steelfist, did you need anything else?" Luna asked.

"To formalize the paperwork, we will need to have our medical staff perform a physical to ensure she is alive and unharmed. That can happen where she is, since that would make it less stressful on the child," Steelfist replied.

"Thank you, Beltchirp. How are the rest of the children doing?" Dan asked.

"All of the children are doing much better, Doctor Granger. We do have three muggle children there as well as they are either brother or sister of a magical child and they, too, were being abused," Beltchirp said.

"And the three muggle children are doing well?" Emma asked.

"They are. They seem to enjoy being in a place where food is available and no one hits them and, while they don't get to perform magic, they do get to watch it and that seems to make them happy as well," Beltchirp replied.

"Thank you, Beltchirp," Luna said.

"I live to serve Lord Harry, Lady Hermione, Lady Luna and the children," Beltchirp said, then popped out.

"If I may ask, what are you doing with magical and muggle children?" Augusta asked.

"They are gathering the muggleborn magical children who are being abused and are too young to be sent to Hogwarts and the children of school age who were unable to go to Hogwarts because their parents or guardians didn't approve of the magical world and are taking them to a place where they can be taught and prepared to live in magical society," Steelfist said.

"YOU!" Augusta exclaimed. "You're the reason all of those children are missing! I presume they are better cared for than where they were. Do you have more than just a house elf taking care of them?" Augusta asked.

Hermione explained their project, "Madam Longbottom, we have hired fifty-three muggleborn graduates from Hogwarts who have been thoroughly checked by Gringotts security department to teach and help raise these children. We have forty-three house elves bound to us to assist with these efforts. We take children now at the first sign of abuse and, where necessary, take any muggle children to the muggles who work for The Crown in the capacity of caring for them and, in extreme cases, we turn the abusive muggles over to the Goblins for trial and punishment."

"And you children did this?" Augusta asked in shock.

"Matriarch Longbottom, I know what it is like to be abused by the people who are supposed to love you and provide you with nurturing care. I now have two adults who love me and are proud of me. I have the resources to help other children who are in the same position, I have the help of the Goblins to get it done and I have the political power to ensure no one prevents me from helping those other children. What kind of person would I be if I just looked the other direction and let my fellow brothers and sisters in magic continue to be treated the way I was treated?" Harry said, tears of anger leaking from his eyes.

Augusta looked at the boy who had befriended her Neville and saw, in a flash of insight, the man he would become. _This is the kind of man I want my Neville to become,_ she thought. She looked down at the floor, "Forgive me, Lord Potter. I was not judging you. I was just surprised by your ingenuity and your willingness to do this at such a young age. I know your parents would be exceptionally proud of you. The way I am proud of the young man Neville is turning into. And I know your influence upon Neville can only be good."

Neville looked up in surprise at his grandmother. Never before had he seen her act subservient to a wizard, much less a boy his age.

"My apologies as well, Matriarch Longbottom. I did not mean to be rude to you. After all, you were only asking a simple question," Harry said contritely.

-oOoOo-

Harry was laying in bed, rubbing both Luna's and Hermione's scalps. Their parents had gone to bed some time ago and Harry, Hermione and Luna had been complete bundles of nerves and decided to watch "Hook" which Dan had bought the previous week. Harry couldn't help but think Moira's grandmother, Wendy, looked an awful lot like Professor McGonagall and said so to Hermione and Luna, causing both of them to laugh hysterically and ask Harry if he needed another eye healing potion. He took this in good humour and found out the girls liked magical tickling a whole lot better than magical hugs as both girls had to muffle their screams into pillows. They didn't seem to think he needed to apologise and actually seemed to be trying to think of ways to make him tickle them again. _I am really going to need to figure this hugging and tickling out,_ he thought.

"Can you think of something I can say when I want to get both of your attention on something?" Harry asked then continued, "Its quite a mouthful to say 'Hermione and Luna' and I don't want to be rude to either of you," he explained.

"Can we think about it and get back to you?" Hermione asked, looking up at him.

Harry nodded.

"What made you think about that, Harry?" Luna asked, also looking up at him.

"Dad and I were talking yesterday before dinner. I needed to know how he knew something and after he explained it, it made so much more sense and I have been trying to find the right time to tell you both," he said.

He received a chorused, "Tell us what?" causing all three of them to smile.

Hermione briefly kissed Luna, "Little Jinx!" she said softly, but loud enough for Harry to hear as well.

"That I love you," Harry said, his voice thick with emotion.

He suddenly had two quietly crying witches taking turns kissing him on the lips. He opened his mouth to ask a question, only for first Hermione, then Luna, to kiss him deeply. Once they calmed down a bit, they explained.

"Harry, Luna and I have been discussing this during our kissing practices and we didn't want you to feel pressured if we said it first," Hermione said.

"And we didn't want you feeling bad if you couldn't love us back or have our hearts broken because you couldn't love us," Luna said.

Harry then got a huge smile on his face and received a chorused, "What are you thinking about, Harry?"

This time it was Luna who kissed Hermione and said, "Jinx!"

"I have the perfect name. Any one of us can use it to refer to the other two," he explained. "What do you think, My Loves?" he asked.

Both Hermione and Luna smiled at him and kissed him once more.

Three very happy children fell asleep in one another's arms.

-oOoOo-

Luna had just finished checking the items her House Lovegood elves, Pokey and Gumby had packed for her. She then asked them to take care of The Rookery and let the other House Lovegood elves know to take care of the other Lovegood manors and homes. She introduced Dan and Emma to Skitter, Tinkle and Mophead, the house elves from Love's Hold. She then went in search of Hermione.

Hermione was sitting on her bed in her room, looking at the mirror above her dressing table. Luna knocked on the door jamb, and when Hermione didn't respond, Luna entered the room and sat down next to her. Hermione absently wrapped her arm around Luna and pulled her in close to herself.

Luna rested her head on Hermione's shoulder and looked in the mirror at Hermione, then looked up at her. "Are you all packed?" Luna asked softly.

Hermione nodded as the first tear ran down her cheek.

Luna was beside herself. _Did I do something wrong to hurt her? Did Harry upset her?_ "What is wrong, My Love?" Luna asked.

This caused Hermione to turn her head and look down at Luna, then laugh in embarrassment. "I'm just feeling sorry for myself, Luna-Love." She looked up and out the window, more tears falling, "I was wondering what it was going to be like sleeping alone again." then she looked down at her hands in her lap, her crying unabated.

Luna was puzzled. "Why would you be sleeping alone?" she asked.

Hermione laughed again, although had not stopped crying, "Because they don't let boys and girls sleep together in the same room, much less the same bed at Hogwarts."

"Are you sure?" Luna asked, now even more puzzled.

Hermione smiled and wiped her eyes then looked at Luna again. "Yes, Love, I am fairly certain," she said and kissed her briefly. She then looked around the room once more and her eyes were drawn back to the mirror. "Look at me. I'm a mess!" she exclaimed softly.

"A very pretty mess," Harry said, standing in the doorway, startling both girls.

Luna looked at him, "How long have you been standing there?"

"Since Hermione said she was feeling sorry for herself, but it looked like you had the situation in hand. Besides, even though both of you are married to me, I am pleased you both love one another as much as you love me," Harry replied, a smile growing on his face.

Luna stood and pulled Hermione up to stand and gave her a hug, "Now go wash your face with cold water. I need to speak with Lord Potter," Luna said.

Hermione smiled, kissed Luna's forehead, walked past Harry, kissed him on the cheek and went into the loo.

"Yes, Lady Lovegood?" Harry asked with amusement.

"I'm actually being quite serious, Harry. Hermione told me the three of us would have to sleep alone at Hogwarts and that would not be good," she explained.

Harry was surprised at her statement. _How could I have been so stupid?_ he thought. "We'll figure something out, Luna," he said.

Hermione came out of the loo, looking much less emotional. She smiled and was about to speak when Dan called from downstairs.

"Are you three just about ready to go? We don't want to be late getting to the station," Dan called out.

"Coming right down!" Harry called back down, going to his own room to grab his trunk, the feather-weight charm already cast on it.

He pulled it out to the hallway and saw Hermione and Luna pulling their trunks along behind them with some difficulty. He shook his head with a smile and drew his wand, pointed it at Luna's trunk and said, "Pluma gravitas," with an upward flick of his wand, not expecting the resultant chaos. Fortunately, Luna was closer to Harry than was Hermione. Unfortunately for Harry, Luna was closer to Harry than Hermione. Luna's trunk went from weighing thirty-five kilos to weighing one gram. Luna fell on her derrière with the sudden loss of balance from the trunk losing almost all of its weight. This caused the trunk to fly up and, in Luna's letting go of it for fear of it coming down on her and crushing her, sailed right into Harry's arms.

Hermione watched the trunk fly at Harry and screamed in fear as Harry was standing so near the stair rail. When he caught the trunk and didn't move, she was utterly shocked, amazed and impressed. She then looked down at Luna who was rubbing the back of her head.

"Everything okay up here?" Dan asked, running up the stairs.

"Fine, Dad. I just did something without thinking through all of the implications," Harry said. "Can you take these downstairs while I get Hermione's?" Harry asked, handing Dan both trunks, much to Dan's amazement.

Dan took a trunk by both handles and realized they hardly weighed anything, then balanced one on each hand, trying not to walk so fast that they fell off his hands.

Hermione reached her hand down to Luna and helped her stand. She then turned Luna around, kissed the back of her head, spun her around again and kissed her firmly on the lips.

"I'm sorry, My Loves. I cast a feather weight charm on Luna's trunk without thinking what would happen," Harry said apologetically. He then cast the same charm on Hermione's trunk, picked it up and carried it down the stairs. Hermione and Luna walked down the stairs arm-in-arm, watching how impressive it looked for Harry to be carrying a trunk on the palm of his hand.

They all climbed into Dan's car and drove to London via the A316. Dan decided to use valet parking so he and Emma could spend more time with the children. The valets had a trolley readily available and stood back in shock as Harry lifted all three trunks individually from the boot and set them upon the trolley. He had already shrunk Hedwig's cage and sent her on ahead earlier that morning. They took a leisurely stroll to the platform. It was the usual mid-morning lull at King's Cross station and the group decided to sit down for a pastry and something to wash it down with.

It was half ten when they finished and walked towards Platform nine. Although usually quieter this time on a Tuesday morning, the platform seemed filled with people who were significantly fashion-challenged with an odd variety of caged animals, from what appeared to be baby lions, which Hermione explained were half-kneazles, owls of various varieties and other unusual pets in cages, baskets and carriers.

Harry was still a bit disappointed he had not seen Sirius this morning. Sirius had promised he would see him today and now that they were on the platforms at King's Cross, it didn't seem likely he would show up.

Harry noticed that Hermione and Luna were whispering to one another. Periodically he would look back at them and see they were either giggling or shyly smiling at him with the hint of blushes on their cheeks.

Suddenly there was the noise of a panicked rush behind them. They all stopped to see what the cause of the commotion was. A rampaging family of redheads was running down the platform.

Hermione and Harry rolled their eyes at the antics of the Weasley family. _Late as usual AGAIN!_ Hermione thought.

The redheads rushed past them without a backwards glance and ran straight towards the wall and passed through the stone archway onto Platform nine and three-quarters. Harry stopped the trolley.

Luna and Hermione were getting hugs from Dan and Emma. They finished with their hugs and kisses and turned to Harry. "I'll take the trolley through and get the trunks on board," Hermione said, kissing him on the cheek.

Luna kissed him on the cheek and said, "And I'll make sure to save you a seat, Husband," with a little smile.

The two girls passed through the stone archway and headed to the train, bypassing the quite loud goodbyes from the Weasley matriarch. The two of them carried their trunks to the last car of the train and easily found an empty compartment. Hermione placed the trunks up into the racks and sat next to the window, motioning for Luna to sit next to her. Luna sat and snuggled into Hermione's side, resting her head on Hermione's shoulder.

-oOoOo-

Harry turned after the girls walked through and looked at the man and woman who were the closest thing to parents. Emma held her arms out to him and he happily entered into the embrace, feeling for the first time that he would miss home more than he would miss Hogwarts. "I love you, Mum," Harry said.

"I love you too, Son. Write often and keep the girls safe," Emma said, dabbing at the corners of her eyes with a tissue.

Dan then pulled Harry into an embrace, which Harry also happily returned. "I love you, Dad. Thank you for all of the talks and... well... everything," Harry said.

"I love you too, Son. Remember that both Mum and I are proud of you, and that we're looking forward to seeing you at the Yule holidays," Dan said, a lone tear running down his face as well.

Harry smiled then turned and walked right into the stone archway, nearly breaking his nose. "What the hell?" he exclaimed.

Dan rushed up to him with Emma close behind. "What happened to the archway?" Dan asked.

"I don't know. It's closed up," Harry said, slightly panicked.

-oOoOo-

The five-minute warning whistle of the Express blew. Hermione and Luna were in a slight panic that Harry had not yet come through the portal. Hermione opened the carriage window as Arthur and Molly Weasley were standing just outside, seeing their boys and girl onto the train. "Mr. Weasley, Harry hasn't come through the portal yet. Could you please go through and let him know he needs to come through?" Hermione pleaded.

"Certainly, Hermione, wasn't it?" Arthur asked with a pleasant smile.

"Yes sir, that's right. Please hurry," Hermione asked.

Arthur turned and walked quickly over to the portal and tried walking through. Always the pragmatist, Arthur had his hand out in front so he wouldn't strike his head into things. Instead of passing through the portal, his hand firmly slapped into it and he stopped. "Odd," he mumbled to himself, then pulled his wand and began casting spells at it.

"What in the name of Salazar do you think you're doing?" a large burly man in red auror robes said, walking quickly towards Arthur.

Arthur turned to the voice.

"Oh! Arthur. What's wrong?" the auror asked.

"Gulesblouse, I'm glad to see you. The portal seems to be closed and young Harry Potter is stuck on the other side," Arthur said.

"Go talk to the conductor. Let me handle this, Arthur," Gulesblouse said.

Arthur hurried off to explain the situation to the conductor.

The auror pulled his wand and cast detection spells on the portal. "Strange," he mumbled to himself. He transfigured his clothing to look like a British Transport policeman's uniform and apparated to Platform nine.

-oOoOo-

Dan and Emma were trying to calm a panicking Harry when a British Transport policeman walked up to them. "What seems to be the issue here?" he asked.

Dan and Emma looked at him and were trying to formulate a response that wouldn't get them sent to Broadmoor. Harry felt the man's magic. "I was trying to get to Platform nine and three-quarters and the barrier just closed up," he said, causing Dan and Emma to panic even more.

"No worries, Lord Potter. I'll take you there in a moment then come back to talk with your guardians," Gulesblouse said, seeing the relief on Dan and Emma's faces when he said 'Lord Potter'.

Gulesblouse took Harry's arm, looked around to ensure no one was watching them and apparated to Platform nine and three-quarters. Arthur and Molly were waiting on the platform with Hermione and Luna standing just on the stairs of the last carriage.

"Harry!" Harry heard both Hermione and Luna shout from the train.

"Run along now, My Lord, and get on. The train is already a few minutes late," Gulesblouse said.

Harry ran to Hermione and Luna, who were clearly relieved he had been found. The three of them walked to the compartment as the train's departure whistle blew.

After seeing the boy get on the train at the door with the two girls, Gulesblouse turned around and walked to the portal. This time, when casting his detection charms, there seemed to be no issues with the portal so he attempted to walk through and was successful, appearing just a metre in front of Dan and Emma, both of whom jumped at his sudden, silent appearance.

"My apologies, folks. Lord Potter is on board the Express and safely headed off to school," the policeman told them.

Dan reached out his hand, which the policeman shook, "Thank you for taking care of that. We were somewhat panicked," Dan said.

"All in a day's work sir. Did someone apparate you here or do you have a means home?" Gulesblouse asked.

"We drove from Surrey," Dan said.

"Well then, I shall be leaving you. Take care, sir, madam," Gulesblouse said and stepped back through the portal.

Dan and Emma had an uneventful drive home.

-oOoOo-

Arthur received assurances the train would not depart from the station until Harry was on board. He quickly walked down to the last car and noted the two girls were standing on the boarding stairs. "I've told the conductor and they're holding the train. There seems to be some issue with the portal. Auror Gulesblouse was on duty and has gone to fetch Harry," he said to the girls and to Molly.

"Thank you, Mr. Weasley," a somewhat relieved Hermione said.

Two minutes later, a man dressed as a muggle policeman appeared with Harry.

"Harry!" Hermione and Luna shouted, clearly relieved to see him.

Harry ran to them.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Weasley," Hermione said gratefully.

"Yes, thank you," Luna said.

Arthur looked at the three and smiled. "I am happy he is on board. Have a good year at school and perhaps we will see you for a week at Yule," he said hopefully.

The departure whistle blew as the locomotive's wheels churned on the tracks, pulling the slack out of the couplings and pulling the train out of the station.

In all, everything was just as it should be, much to the chagrin of a certain distraught house elf.

-o-AN-o-

Love's Nest is located in the vicinity of

hxxp colon slash slash maps dot google dot co dot uk slash question ll equals 50 dot 219489 comma minus 3.655757 ampersand spn equals 0 dot 001545 comma 0 dot 004128 ampersand t equals h ampersand z equals 19

Hogwarts next

-o-AN-o-


	15. Sorting Feast, Surprise and Sleep

-o-AN-o-  
>There is another twist of lime in this chapter. Nothing really graphic, but communicating, in the end, that Harry, too, is growing to find girls nearly irresistible.<br>Thanks to Robst and Cheral for the idea of Founders Quarters. It may not be their original idea, but it was what inspired their existence for me.  
>Thanks to Claire for fixing the enormous plot hole in this chapter. It was big enough a supertanker could have gone through it without scraping paint.<br>Thanks to texan-muggle for, yet again, freely giving of his time to provide proof-reading and necessary improvements to the writing.  
>I want to give you all fair warning. Chapter 16 is still with the editors. One of my editors is experiencing a personal loss, through which I am supporting her. It may be another week before it is available for publishing. I normally would not publish a chapter before the next one is ready to publish, but I feel it to be unfair to the readers to leave them hanging.<br>-o-AN-o

-oOoOo-

Hermione closed the window, placed a folded blanket on the seat next to the window-side armrest and turned around. Luna was right behind her, waiting for Hermione to sit so she could take the seat next to her. Instead, Hermione silently directed Luna to sit next to the window. Luna pouted but complied. To Luna's pleasant surprise, Hermione sat next to her with a couple of centimeters of gap between them and pulled Luna's head down onto her shoulder and kept her right arm wrapped around the younger girl. Hermione looked at Harry and patted the seat next to her, indicating she wanted him to sit on her left, in the seat nearest the door.

When Harry sat, Hermione sighed deeply and pulled Harry closer. Once both Harry and Luna were as close to Hermione as they could be, she kissed Luna's head and then rested her head against the back of the seat and whispered, "My Loves," and closed her eyes. She let the click-clack of the wheels over the rails lull her into a light doze. Luna, too, fell asleep, enjoying the warmth, companionship and physical reassurance of love.

Harry, however, felt a need to be alert. He'd made a promise to a man who had been murdered by cowards. Right now he could think of a house predominantly filled with cowards. _Cunning. That's laughable. I have more cunning in my little finger than most of the boys in Slytherin combined,_ he thought. Out of his peripheral vision, he saw movement in the corridor and noted it was Neville, Susan and another girl he had seen last year as Susan's nearly constant companion. Harry waved to them and motioned them in. Neville opened the door to the compartment slowly and the three quietly entered, slowly closing the door behind them. He saw they were all struggling with their trunks so cast the feather weight spell on the trunks.

"Thanks, Harry. That makes it significantly easier," Neville said with relief, stowing all three trunks in the racks above their seats.

Susan smiled and blushed at the sight of Luna sleeping on Hermione's shoulder. She then looked at Harry. "Harry, I don't know if you met her last year, but this is Hannah Abbot. She's also in Hufflepuff," Susan whispered.

"Pleased to meet you, Hannah. I'm Harry Potter," Harry said, causing Hannah to blush as brightly as Susan already was, "this is Hermione Granger, the smartest person in Gryffindor," Harry said gesturing to the sleeping girl, whose head had lulled onto his shoulder, "and the little one on the end is Luna Lovegood and this is her first year," Harry said, gesturing to Luna.

Harry was about to ask Hannah about her lineage, as he was now Lord Abbot as well, when the compartment door slammed open, startling everyone in the compartment. Draco Malfoy and his two goons, Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe were at the door.

Unfortunately for these three, they startled Luna and Hermione, both of whom had really, really, REALLY bad startle reactions. Draco hadn't even spoken the first syllable of what he had planned to say before Hermione was at the door and had her knee buried in Malfoy's groin, lifting his feet completely off the ground, causing him to fall into the door of the opposite compartment before she'd even really awoken. Luna had her wand out, its tip glowing before she knew who was even at the door. Harry and Neville also had their wands drawn, just waiting for the girls to get out of the way before firing their own curses.

Hermione, now somewhat awake, looked down at the boy on the floor and the stunned and frightened expressions on the two Slytherin boys. "Gregory, Vincent, how nice of you to check on us. Please be so kind as to remove this foolish boy from my presence," Hermione heard Luna say from just behind her.

The two boys looked at the glowing tip of Hermione's wand and winced each time it pulsed brighter. They nodded, picked a gasping Draco up by his arms and dragged him towards the front of the train.

Hermione closed the door of the compartment, turned and smiled at Luna. "That was very good thinking, Luna Love. Very good. You've earned a hug later," she said and kissed her briefly.

"See what I mean, Hannah," a blushing Susan said, causing Hermione to realise she had an audience.

Hermione looked at the three sitting opposite Harry and blushed.

"That was so... so...," Hannah said, trying to find the word.

"Amazing?" Harry asked helpfully, putting his wand away.

Hannah now looked at Harry, really seeing him for the first time. "You're Harry Potter," she said, looking into his eyes.

Harry was impressed that her eyes did not automatically rise to his scar, but instead held her eyes to his eyes. "I am," he said, waiting for the whole 'Boy-who-lived' discussion to start. He was surprised when, instead of the expected topic of conversation, he got his unasked question answered.

Hannah stood, looked down at the floor and curtseyed, not rising and said, "Lord Abbot, my apologies for being so informal with you earlier. I beg your forgiveness."

Harry stood and took her hands, causing her to look up at him. "Please rise and sit. There is nothing to apologise for so there is nothing to forgive. And my name is Harry."

Hannah rose and sat across from Harry once more and nodded, but did not look up from the floor.

"Hannah, is it so difficult to look at me?" He asked.

She looked up at him then immediately looked down again. Harry was about to ask her to look up when Neville held up his hand to Harry, who waited.

Neville looked at Hannah. "Hannah, can you explain to Lord Abbot and me the reason you will not look at him?"

Hannah looked over at Neville and shook her head.

Neville raised an eyebrow, "Do you wish Lord Abbot to ask you the same question, which you would be honour-bound to answer more fully?"

Hannah looked at Harry then looked at Neville again, "I... Father is thirteenth in the line of succession. To bring our branch of the family closer to the head, I believe Father is hoping I will make a good enough impression on Lord Abbot in the coming years to catch his eye, as it were," she said, a tear running down her cheek.

Susan turned on the bench and pulled Hannah down to her and closed her eyes.

Harry looked at Neville, then at Hermione who was looking at him with a frown. Luna had her head on Hermione's shoulder, her eyes closed and a slight smile on her face.

Harry looked at Hannah. "Hannah, while I am very flattered and I think you're pretty, my heart is spoken for," he said, trying to comfort the girl he had only just met, "and besides, as Lord Abbot, I can override your father's wishes and betroth you to whomever I wish."

Neville and Susan looked at Harry harshly. Hannah sat up, wiped her eyes and looked at Harry with a resigned expression on her face. "Who would you wish me to be betrothed to, My Lord?" she asked, looking down at the floor.

Harry leaned forward and drew her chin up so she would look at him. "I don't know, Hannah. You haven't told me whom you wish to marry," he said.

A moment later, Hannah and Neville were smiling at him. Susan, however had a slightly different method of thanking Harry. She stood, took the step necessary to tower over him, leaned down and kissed him on the lips. "Harry, if I wasn't so serious about Neville...", she said, then turned and sat next to an unamused Neville. He stayed unamused for the ten seconds it took for Susan to sit down and give him a much long, much more Luna-like kiss. Were they going through a tunnel, all of the windows in the last car would glow red from Neville's blush.

"Now, Hannah, could you call me Harry? And if your father gives you any problems at all, please let me know and Lord Abbot will have a chat with him about priorities and proprieties for a daughter of my House," Harry said.

"Thank you, Harry," Hannah said, blushing once more.

Harry turned to Hermione to see if he had resolved the situation to her liking. She had a soft smile and pulled him to her. "I am so happy Sirius has taught you about your responsibilities," Hermione whispered. He presented his cheek to be kissed, but her hand softly drawing his chin over told him it wasn't his cheek she wanted. He turned to face her and she slowly closed the distance and kissed him. When his mouth didn't open for her, she gently licked his lips, requesting entry. He opened his mouth and the tip of her tongue slowly licked around the tip of his tongue in four languishing laps. As she pulled out of the kiss, her eyes flared, she smiled and whispered, "Yum, peppermint kisses," and licked her lips.

Susan and Hannah had been watching the two of them kiss and could see the reaction Hermione's kiss had on Harry, who was now sporting a goofy smile.

Hermione turned her head to look at the two girls sitting across from her, who were staring back at her. "So, what's it like in Hufflepuff House?" she asked nonchalantly.

-oOoOo-

"First years! First years! All of you over here! First years! First years! We're all taking the boats!" Hagrid shouted above the clamour of the children disembarking from the train. Hagrid looked at the flood of children coming towards him. He looked over at the docks next to the platform and noted another two dozen boats suddenly appeared. _Well, this is going to be a long sorting,_ he thought to himself.

Harry and Hermione escorted Luna over to Hagrid.

"'ello, Harry. 'ello, Hermione," Hagrid said, then looked down at the little blonde girl. "And who do we have here?" he asked with a smile.

Harry handled the introductions. "Rubeus Robert Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds of Hogwarts, it is my distinct pleasure to introduce you to Lady Luna Selene Lovegood, head of House Lovegood, Founding Family of Hogwarts and the Ministry, and one of my best and most beloved friends," Harry said, bowing to Luna as he introduced her.

Hagrid, not knowing the proper etiquette for such an auspicious meeting, knelt before Luna and, looking down, said, "It is my most humble pleasure to meet the head of a Founding Family, My Lady."

"Mister Hagrid, are you the head of your house?" Luna asked, a dreamy smile on her face, her pupils dilating fully.

"No, My Lady. There is no house of Hagrid, though I am the only one left of the family," he said, feeling profoundly sad at this realisation.

"Well then, we must correct this imbalance," Luna said, the smile transforming to a most serious expression. "Lord Longbottom," she called out. Neville walked over from where he had been chatting with Susan and Hannah.

"Yes, Lady Lovegood?" Neville asked, smiling at the mischievous smile on Luna's face.

Luna looked over at Neville then at Harry then at Hermione. "Hermione, may I do something very nice for Mister Hagrid?" she whispered pleadingly.

Hermione looked at her a moment and then realized all of the first years were looking at her as they surrounded Hagrid at the moment. Hermione nodded slightly.

Luna then turned to Neville and Harry, who were now standing together. "My fellow Lords, do we have a quorum?"

Neville said, "We do."

Harry also spoke, "We do."

"I have need to call an impromptu meeting in the Great Hall after the Sorting Ceremony," Luna said, looking at Hagrid.

Harry and Neville simply nodded and smiled at the impish little blonde.

Luna turned her attention back to Hagrid. "Arise, Mister Hagrid, take care of us, your charges, but be prepared to be called forth in front of all of the students and staff at Hogwarts this evening," she said, taking one of Hagrid's immense hands and pulling it upwards as if to help him stand.

Hagrid stood and looked at her but had no words to respond to her. He looked at Harry and Neville looking at him, searching for some assistance.

"Hagrid. The first years," Hermione stage-whispered.

Hagrid looked at her with a smile of thanks. "First years! Four to a boat! No pushing or shoving. There's plenty of boats for us all," he said, offering his pinky finger for Luna to hold. In a much quieter voice directed at Harry and Hermione, "Don't worry. I shall take care of her as if she was my best friend," he said.

Luna took his pinky and looked up at him, "That is good of you, Mister Hagrid, since you now are one of my very best friends. I hope that soon, you will also think of me as one of your best friends," causing Hagrid to blush and smile. Harry and Hermione watched as Hagrid led the first years off.

Neville was holding the last carriage for them. Susan and Hannah were already sitting on one side of the carriage. Both Neville and Harry each took one of Hermione's hands and assisted her into the coach. Harry insisted Neville enter first and then he followed. All five of them were surprised when the bench Susan and Hannah were sitting on become longer, opening a space between the two girls just big enough for Neville to sit in cosy comfort with a lovely girl on either side of him. He sat between the two girls and determined the only way the three of them would be comfortable would be if he wrapped an arm around each girl's shoulders. As the girls rested their heads on Neville's shoulders, they both sighed.

Hermione smiled as she wrapped Harry's arm around her and cuddled into him, trying to keep her façade from collapsing at the thought of sleeping alone tonight, or worse.

-oOoOo-

Luna was sitting in a boat with another girl and two boys.

The girl asked, "What house do you think you will be sorted into? I am going to be sorted into Hufflepuff. I just know it!"

One of the boys seemed decidedly unsure about the whole concept of being away from home ten months out of the year and told the other three that neither of his families have magic.

The other boy, one Colin Creevey, seemed very excited that Luna not only knew, but was actually friends with Harry Potter. "Do you really know him? I've read everything there is about him! He's brilliant, you know. He killed a dark lord when he was only fifteen months old! Isn't that just amazing? Do you mind if I take your picture?" he asked Luna, and without pausing for breath, took her picture, the flash dazzling her eyes completely.

Luna's startled reaction did not help in ameliorating the situation as her foot lashed out, striking the younger boy in his upper thigh, causing Colin to over-balance and fall straight into the lake.

Hagrid heard the splash and the screaming coming from the boy and was startled. The giant squid who inhabited the lake rose up out of the water behind the boats and plucked the boy from the water, changing his screams of help to shrill, inarticulate screams of blind terror.

"My apologies, Master Hagrid. Mr. Creevey's photographic contraption caused me to be momentarily blinded and I rather unintentionally kicked him out of the boat," Luna said to Hagrid. She then looked back at the squid, "Harchord, could you please place Mr. Creevey upon the docks up ahead so the house elves may assist him in getting dry again?" she asked

The squid raised one of its appendages higher and waved it, then placed Colin in a more-friendly grip around his waist and legs and descended below the depths so that only Colin and a bit of the tentacle holding him was above the water. The surge beneath the boats was powerful as Colin flew ahead of the boats at high speed as the squid shot itself towards the docks beneath the castle, setting Colin down gently on the edge of the docks and submerged once more, disappearing into the black depths.

The other first-years in the boats just gaped at Luna in stunned silence.

By the time the boats arrived at the docks, Colin was dry, in fresh robes and was even more impressed with Luna than he had been knowing she was a friend of Harry's.

-oOoOo-

Professor McGonagall was not merely surprised at the veritable fleet of first year boats. She was shocked. The castle provided for enough boats for the first years and never before had there been a need for more than ten or twelve boats. Tonight there were almost forty boats coming towards the dock. Outwardly, however, she showed little sign of this shock except for a slight tightening around the corners of her eyes. As the first years gathered on the steps, she introduced herself, gave her normal, "Your house is your family" speech and escorted the first years into the Great Hall. While Luna was looking forward to making friends at Hogwarts, she was really looking forward to sleeping with Hermione and Harry tonight. She did not notice the looks of surprise on the professors as a seeming army of first years entered the Great Hall.

She watched the sorting ceremony only peripherally. She saw that Colin had been placed in Gryffindor. She watched as the muggle-born boy from her boat had been placed in Ravenclaw. As predicted, the other girl in her boat was placed in Hufflepuff.

"Lady Luna Lovegood," McGonagall called, a slight edge of shock to her voice.

The hall quieted as Luna walked up to the Sorting Hat with poise and grace. As she got close to the Sorting Hat, she paused, bowed and spoke to the hat. "Clarence, it is so nice to finally meet you. How are you treated, Father of Hogwarts?" she asked formally.

The Sorting Hat had not been spoken to in a friendly fashion nor addressed by its title in over three hundred years and was surprised. "Lady Lovegood, the honour is mine," it said quietly,"although no one has spoken to me directly in over three centuries," it said, falling silent once more.

"No minds ripe enough to puzzle out your secrets and know you for what and who you are?" she asked the hat quietly.

"No, Lady Lovegood. Although I can see two close to you have the minds for it, they really have never been given the opportunity to speak with me," the hat said.

"We shall be correcting that, Clarence," she said. Realising the entire Great Hall was silent, even though she knew Harry and Hermione were pleasantly surprised with Luna speaking with the Sorting Hat, she blushed. "Clarence, may I have your permission to lift you and place you upon my head?" she asked shyly.

"It would be my privilege to sort you, Lady Lovegood," the hat said.

Luna lifted the hat, sat upon the stool and placed the sorting hat upon her head.

"Hmmmm... Challenging. You are cunning, but Slytherin would just not do. Loyalty and courage are strong in you as well. Your intellect, however is your strongest power and your greatest weakness and needs to be honed. While I do not normally ask the student, considering your position, Lady Luna, would you object to being placed in Ravenclaw?" the hat asked.

"If that is where I am best suited..." she said, trailing off.

"Ravenclaw! Founders' Quarters!" the hat said.

Luna felt a sharp sense of despair. She looked across the hall and saw Hermione staring at her with an utterly miserable look. _Oh no! What have I done? s_he thought.

-oOoOo-

After the announcements, Dumbledore was about to tell the students to tuck in, when Luna stood. Dumbledore looked over at Luna, as did Flitwick. Once more, all sound in the Great Hall stopped.

Neville and Harry then stood, causing all of the professors to look at the two Gryffindors. As Harry stood, Parvati pulled a nearly-tearful Hermione to her and began whispering to her.

Luna walked to the centre aisle of the Great Hall. Neville and Harry joined her on either side.

"Miss Lovegood, Mr Potter, Mr Longbottom is there something you need to speak with me about that cannot wait until after the opening feast?" Dumbledore asked.

Luna spoke first, "Headmaster Dumbledore, the Wizengamot is holding an impromptu meeting here in the Great Hall of Hogwarts tonight to recognise a new House."

Those in the hall from pureblood houses and other well-versed students sucked in their breath. A new House had not been added to the rolls of the Wizengamot in over two hundred years. This was literally history in the making.

"We are honoured and humbled by being witness to this meeting," Dumbledore said respectfully, "and it is our privilege to relinquish Hogwarts' Great Hall for this historic occasion," he said, bowing to the three students.

"Thank you, Headmaster Dumbledore," Luna said. Then she leaned up to Harry and whispered something to him. Harry took out his wand and cast a Sonorous spell on Luna.

"Dear faculty, students and friends of Hogwarts. Tonight, it is our privilege, in front of a quorum of the Wizengamot, to recognise a new House and voting seat, to our august body of representation. This House is being added due to its generosity to Wizardkind, its lack of prejudice for race or breed and its love-filled heart, where without it and other like-minded Houses, this institution would not be the great lady she is today," Luna said.

There was nervous chattering about the hall in speculation of which family it might be.

Luna looked about the hall, then her eyes rested on the staff table. "Will a friend of Hogwarts, a friend of three of her Founding Families' Lords and a man whom I one day hope to be privileged with calling a friend come and join us in the heart of your home to celebrate the founding of your house? Rubeus Robert Hagrid, please join us," she said.

The applause from Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor was explosive. Hagrid still sat at the staff table, stunned and not entirely believing what he had heard until McGonagall stood and spoke in his ear with a smile and guided him to push his chair out and walk down to the three waiting children.

"Kneel before us, Rubeus Robert Hagrid, so you may know our pleasure," Neville said formally.

Hagrid complied.

"My esteemed colleague has already spoken of your many qualities. Know I count you as not only one of my best friends, Rubeus, but as one of Hogwarts' best friends. While I have only known you but one year, from when you took me on a boat ride allowing me to see the first, breath-taking sight of her lovely countenance, through a hard-lived first year, to carrying me to the infirmary after one of my own housemates incapacitated me to carry out a deed of epic proportions, I could never stop thinking that one day I hoped to be as courageous as you," Neville said, looking at Hagrid, who had tears streaming down into his beard.

Harry then spoke. "Rubeus Robert Hagrid, when I first met you, I knew nothing of magic or the world of Wizards. You guided me through as best you could my first days and became my first true friend I can remember. You even acquired for me my second best friend I would ever meet. I know the love you have for these ancient halls and the students who live and learn in them. Although you likely do not realise it, for your innocence is so great and your heart so large, you taught me how important loyalty is and what it means to be a part of something greater than yourself."

Harry continued. "Rubeus Robert Hagrid, you care for the creatures of the forest, you hunt the game that fill the kitchen that is served for our meals. You are cunning in the hunt and ruthless in the kill. Some might argue that description, Rubeus. Book learning is not your strength, but the ways of nature, the beauty of a wasp stinging a spider and laying its eggs within to eat and hatch new wasps. The harvesting of the honey and the hares from the forest. These require knowledge of the land and an instinctual cunning. Taking the life of a deer or a hare ruthlessly so it feels no unnecessary pain is a kindness most dismiss should they think of it at all. This is another aspect of you, my friend."

Luna then spoke. "Rubeus Robert Hagrid, I have known you but one hour, but entering these halls and looking at what I see, listening to what the very stones of this place say to me about your knowledge of the surrounding forests, the lands upon which we stand and the place in which we find shelter and the wisdom that knowledge is tempered with. You are truly a gentleman worthy of a House."

Luna, Harry and Neville pulled their wands and held them together at Hagrid's forehead. "We, the Founding Families, find this man encompasses the values laid down by our forefathers and we find him worthy of the title Lord of House Hagrid." An intense golden flash joined the tips of the three wands and a house ring the size of a small bracelet slid halfway down their joined wands.

Luna removed the ring from the joined wands and passed it to Neville, who passed it to Harry.

Harry looked at Hagrid. "Do you, Rubeus Robert Hagrid, of your own free will, wish to make the attempt to wear the Ring of Lordship for House Hagrid, knowing that if the Ring and Magic deny your bid you will be slain and knowing that if the Ring and Magic accept your bid, you freely accept the rights and responsibilities of this station?"

Luna whispered to Hagrid, "If you wish to do this, Rubeus, you need to say 'I accept the risks of my own free will.'"

Hagrid looked up at Harry, tears still running down his cheeks, "I accept the risks of my own free will," he said haltingly.

Harry placed the ring in Hagrid's left hand and whispered to him, "Place it on your right ring finger, Hagrid."

Hagrid held the ring up to the light then with conviction, slid it onto his right ring finger. He felt a pressure pushing against him and suddenly a bright aura surrounded Hagrid and he could once again feel his full power. His magic had been unbound! The ring flashed a moment and shrank to fit his finger.

Neville said, "The Ministry of Magic and The Crown recognise Lord Rubeus Robert Hagrid as the rightful Lord of House Hagrid."

Harry then said, "As the representative and honoured Friend of both, for Gringotts and The People, I recognise Lord Rubeus Robert Hagrid as the rightful Lord of House Hagrid."

With prompting from Harry, Hagrid said, "I, Lord Rubeus Robert Hagrid, do accept the rights and responsibilities of my station with honour, strength, wisdom and courage."

"Lord Hagrid, there is just one final piece. You have the choice and opportunity to swear an oath of fealty to one of the Founding Families. We, all of us, would understand if you should choose to want to think upon it for a time. If you would like, you may decide now, or at any time to take a vassal oath," Luna said.

"Harry, what should I do?" Hagrid asked.

Harry looked at his first ever friend. "Hagrid, this is a decision you must make with your heart and your head, my friend. Many would influence you to swear to one family or another for the political power or prestige. Neville's family is known for their strength and courage as well as their camaraderie and his family is known for surviving last stands. My family is known for its courage and strength and its wisdom and knowledge. Luna's family is known for its intellect, courage, cunning and resiliency. You would fit in well with any of us and all of us would welcome you with open arms," Harry explained, "but, my friend, I cannot and will not make this decision for you nor will I counsel you for which family to swear."

Neville looked at the three of them. From one, then back to another, to the third, cycling through them for several moments. He finally looked at Neville. "My Lord, with your permission, I would like to swear fealty to House Longbottom," causing all three of them to smile, much to Hagrid's relief.

Once his oath was given and accepted, Neville told him to rise and sent him back to his seat. The three of them once again formally thanked Dumbledore and the students and returned to their seats.

"Let the feast commence!" the Headmaster said, only an hour late.

-oOoOo-

When Harry sat next to Hermione once more, he was concerned about her. While she was normally excited at the opening feast, she was upset at having to sleep alone tonight. Luna, too, had seemed unusually tense. He tried his best to engage Hermione in conversation, but she seemed neither interested in talking nor in eating as she pushed her food around her plate without taking a bite.

"Hermione, you have to eat. If you don't, you will get sick and that will cause Luna and I undue worry," Harry whispered to her.

She nodded, but seemed no more interested in food. Harry then decided to invoke his head-of-house authority, as Sirius had warned him he would need to do from time to time. He turned to her and whispered, "Hermione Jane Potter, you are to eat the food on your plate until it is empty. I will not have you getting sick." Harry felt a small pulse of magic leave him.

Hermione was curled around the ball of pain in her heart. Harry had tried coaxing her to eat, but how could she eat when the loves of her life would not be there, providing her with warmth and the very sustenance of life, love? Harry then essentially ordered her to eat, but how could she? She felt a tidal wave of magic wash over her and encompass her, filling her with the need to eat and be strong for her sister-wife and her husband. She suddenly found herself ravenous. She began eating. She had to eat. She couldn't get sick. She ate the roast beef, the Yorkshire pudding, the potatoes, and just when she felt as if she could eat no more, Harry placed a small piece of roast on her plate and her appetite renewed. She ate it, the half treacle tart Harry put on her plate was gone almost as quickly. She took a piece of bread and scoured her plate with it to get the very last bits of gravy and then ate that as well. She finally felt sated. She could feel her despair taking over again. The thought of being alone tonight. So alone. She felt someone approach from behind, a hand upon her shoulder. She felt Harry wrap his arm around her waist and pull her into himself. Then she felt an embrace all over her body. This would have been nearly enough to cheer her some, but then she felt a second, all-encompassing embrace and she opened her eyes in surprise. The hand on her shoulder was Luna's and both she and Harry had their eyes closed and were holding her in a magical hug. There was no tingling. No feeling of building tension. Just an overwhelming sense of affection, caring and love. Like being wrapped up on a fur-lined, down comforter that had all the smells of home and her room, coupled with the scents of gardenia, heather and lavender. She put her left hand on Luna's hand on her right shoulder.

"Hermione Love, hold in your heart the love I have for you," Luna whispered, "you will see me in the morning. I promise!" she whispered emphatically, seemingly trying to reassure herself as much as the older girl.

The three of them looked up as Dumbledore stood and rang his glass with his spoon as the food disappeared from the tables. "Prefects, please take charge of your first years. Welcome all, once more, to another year at Hogwarts!"

Hermione could feel Luna's mood take a downward turn. Luna looked at Hermione, "I have to go," she said. Hermione nodded mutely, trying to drink of the sight of the girl before her. Luna kissed her on the cheek, then kissed Harry on the cheek and rushed back over to the Ravenclaw table where the other first years from Ravenclaw were gathering.

-oOoOo-

There were forty-eight Ravenclaw first years being led to Ravenclaw Tower. While all of the other first years were challenged with a logic puzzle, Luna was greeted formally by the woman in the portrait. "Lady Lovegood, I remember well when your parents were sorted into Ravenclaw. A fine couple they were. The world is a much poorer place without their bright, gentle souls gliding upon its face," the woman in the portrait told her.

"Thank you. Perhaps I may come talk with you about my parents' time here at some later date?" she asked politely.

"I would be most pleased with the opportunity to speak with you about your parents, My Lady," the woman said. The woman then bowed to Luna and the portrait opened for her.

Luna entered the Ravenclaw common room. The room was extremely well ordered. There were four large island-type fireplaces situated such that they provided warmth to the couches surrounding them on all four sides. Behind each couch were tables with two chairs per side, two large, low, round tables in the centre of the room surrounded by comfortable chairs. Bookcases with reading nooks lined the walls. There were two staircases opposite the door hidden behind the bookcases. This fact was made obvious as these were the only two reading nooks which did not have high-backed plush chairs in them.

She wondered over to the pair of bookcases and looked at the titles. The books in the left bookcase included works on strategy, agronomy, horticulture, philosophy and other similar topics. The books in the right bookcase included works on apiculture, viticulture, political theory, logic, arithmancy and runes.

She felt a chill behind her and turned. The Ravenclaw ghost was looking at her from a respectful distance. Luna curtseyed, "Lady Helena," she said, lowering her eyes to the hem of the ghost's dress.

"Arise, Lady Luna, and know I am pleased to finally meet an intellectual equal in my mother's house," the ghost said, causing the older Ravenclaws who had entered the common room to gasp in surprise. Never before had The Ravenclaw ghost spoken to anyone in Ravenclaw.

Professor Flitwick entered the common room and was surprised at the silence. He looked around the room and saw Luna and The Gray Lady holding a quiet discussion while every other Ravenclaw in the room strained to hear it. The Gray Lady paused for a moment and looked over at the diminutive professor turned back to Luna, whispered something to her then glided over to Flitwick.

"Professor Flitwick, there is someone I am honoured to introduce to you," Helena said earnestly and turned to glide back over to Luna. Filius looked dumbstruck for a moment and then walked over to the two of them.

"Lady Luna, this is Professor Filius Warwick Flitwick, an accomplished charms and enchantments master, an accomplished professional duellist and current Head of House for Ravenclaw. Professor Flitwick, this is Lady Luna Selene Lovegood, someone I consider at least an equal of my intellectual capacity and I am proud to call her my friend," Helena said.

Filius knelt before Luna, "My Lady, while House Flitwick is not vassal to House Lovegood, I am nevertheless honoured to make your acquaintance and am privileged to have you in Ravenclaw," he said.

Luna was now embarrassed by the attention she was receiving. "Arise, Professor Flitwick. Unless we are at a formal gathering or in the depths of dealing with a formal matter, please refer to me as either Miss Lovegood or Luna. I am, after all, your student, Sir. Lady Helena speaks highly of your skills at both Charms and Enchanting and tells me you are also a formidable duellist."

Filius allowed his surprise to show on his face. "He is modest about his skills as well, Lady Luna," Helena said. A thoughtful look crossed her face. "Lady Luna, it is getting late. You and your consorts should soon be headed to sleep. Professor Flitwick will be happy, I am sure, to call for you an elf to take you to your quarters."

Filius looked at Helena then at Luna then at Helena again in confusion, "Quarters? Will you not be staying in Ravenclaw dormitories, Miss Lovegood?"

"No Professor. Clarence asked that I stay in my Founders Quarters," Luna replied.

A look of disappointment cross Filius' face. "But if my friends from Gryffindor are permitted to study with me here in the common room, I would be more than happy to spend as much of my study time amongst my house as possible," she said, seeing the look on his face.

Filius smiled. "Of course your Gryffindor friends would be welcome. Let me get you a house elf," he said. "Gallmonger," he said and clapped his hands twice.

A house elf appeared wearing a tabard with the Ravenclaw crest on the front and the Hogwarts crest on the back. "How may I help Professor Flitwick?" he asked.

"Gallmonger, could you please take Miss Lovegood," Filius gestured to Luna, "to the Founders Quarters and come to her when she calls you?"

"Gallmonger can do that, Professor, if Miss Lovegood is allowed in Founders Quarters," he said.

"Lady Helena, it was my pleasure meeting you and I look forward to speaking with you again. Professor Flitwick, I look forward to seeing you in Charms on Friday," Luna said, curtseying once more to Helena.

Luna took hold of Gallmonger's hand and the elf popped them out.

"How extraordinary," Filius said.

"Yes, Filius, she is quite extraordinary," Helena said. Just as Flitwick was going to speak with the previously-silent ghost, she faded through a wall, leaving a thousand questions unanswered.

-oOoOo-

Harry had been trying to comfort Hermione but it was to no avail. The two of them were in Hermione's favourite corner of the Gryffindor common room. Professor McGonagall caught sight of her two favourite students and headed over to them. She paused in her approach and noticed Miss Granger seemed somewhat distraught and Harry, to whom Minerva felt she owed a debt to Mr Potter which could never be paid, was holding her, it seemed, trying to console her. She was just about to get closer when two Hogwarts house elves popped in next to them, briefly spoke with them, causing both of them to smile and each took an elf's hand. The elves popped them out of the common room, causing Minerva to panic slightly. _Whatever could be wrong? And why were they smiling? s_he thought, looking around the common room then leaving, heading towards Albus' office.

-oOoOo-

Luna stood in a common room, which was about the same size as the Ravenclaw common room. In the centre of the room was an inverted-funnel, stone chimney supported by four columns. If she wanted to, she could walk straight into the fire pit without ducking. The furnishings looked new and yet still had that comfortable, inviting quality about them, The ceiling was at least three levels high and the bookcases lining the walls went all the way to the ceiling. To gain access to the higher shelves, there was a segmented series of catwalks, but there was no visible means to access the catwalks. The one feature of the room which caught Luna's immediate notice was, while there were no gaslights in sight, the room was illuminated to a comfortable brightness, as if it were lit from every direction.

The fire in the fireplace burned with a warm, crackling fire, but there was no fuel in the pit to burn. There were no soot stains on either the outside or, when she walked nearer, the inside of the immense chimney.

"Is Lord Harry's Lady Luna needing anything else right now?" Gallmonger asked, Luna having not yet released his hand. Luna realised house elves likely had some means of seeing her connection to Harry.

Luna looked down at the elf, "Gallmonger, can you please ask two other elves to come here? I need something that is going to require three elves for a few minutes," she said.

Gallmonger raised his eyebrows in surprise at that statement, but he closed his eyes and with his free hand, he snapped his fingers twice. Two additional elves appeared.

"Gallmonger be needing help?" one of the elves asked in surprise, then realised there was a witch here. "How can Tubby be helping?"

The other elf also looked surprised and asked, "How can Sloppy be helping?"

Luna looked at the two new elves, "Can the two of you go to Gryffindor Tower, find Harry Potter and Hermione Granger and ask them if they want to come to Luna Lovegood. If they do, please bring them here. Gallmonger is going to keep me company, so I am not lonely, until they come," she explained.

"Tubby and Sloppy happy to help Lord Harry's Lady Luna," the two elves chorused, snapped their fingers and disappeared with an echo-less pop.

"Gallmonger happy to stay with you until Lord Harry and Lord Harry's Lady Hermione are delivered, Lord Harry's Lady Luna," the elf said.

"Thank you, Gallmonger," Luna said.

"Did Lord Harry's Lady Luna not grow up with elves?" Gallmonger asked.

"Please call me Lady Luna or just Luna, Gallmonger. We have house elves in our family, Gallmonger. Why do you ask?" Luna asked curiously.

"Lady Luna," the elf said slowly, as if savouring the name in its mouth, "you is just so nice to me. Saying 'pleases' and 'thank you's'. House elves not used to being treated this way," Gallmonger said.

"Even here at Hogwarts?" Luna asked.

"No Lady Luna. Some wizards and witches are not unkind, but many treat house elves not good. Some students make elves punish themselves," Gallmonger said sadly.

"Gallmonger, do the elves serve Hogwarts or are they bound to a person?" Luna asked calculatingly.

"Hogwarts elves serve the castle, the grounds and the headmaster and professors. We remember the Founders and are happy these quarters are once again being used," Gallmonger said.

A twin pop and a squeal announced the arrival of Harry and Hermione.

Luna said, "Excuse me, Gallmonger, but I must greet my family." Gallmonger nodded as she turned and ran to Hermione and Harry.

Hermione had just turned when a blonde missile gently impacted her and a tearful Luna, not consciously realising how much not being in their constant presence was affecting her, embraced her. Hermione, too, was crying tears of happiness and relief.

Harry let the girls have their embrace and knelt down and thanked Tubby and Sloppy, who popped away with happy smiles. He then walked over to Gallmonger and thanked him as well for taking care of Luna in his absence and asked him to wait to leave until the three of them had a chance to greet one another again. Gallmonger nodded mutely, surprised that there were two such kind people in the castle.

Harry then turned back, walking to the girls and embracing both of them, pulling their heads to his chest. "My Loves," he whispered softly then kissed them both on the tops of their heads. All seemed right in the world of Harry Potter once more.

Once the two girls were calmed down and once more satisfied they weren't dreaming, the three parted from their hug and walked around. Hermione was in love with the common room and its ceiling-tall bookcases. Harry motioned for Gallmonger to join them and the elf walked one step behind and to the right of Harry. Harry stopped a moment, causing the three of them to stop and waited for Gallmonger to come up next to him. When he didn't, Harry looked back and saw Gallmonger nervously rubbing his hands together. Harry held his hand out to the elf, who took his hand, then Harry knelt down.

"Gallmonger, I doubt Luna had time to explain this, but as far as I am concerned, you are a person, much as I am a person. If you are not uncomfortable with being treated equally, please walk beside me and if you know any history of these quarters or of Hogwarts you might think we would find interesting, please share it with us. We are here to learn, although we will be retiring in an hour, as we have class tomorrow morning," Harry explained. Gallmonger nodded, but continued to walk a step behind and to the right of Harry.

"The library is certainly impressive, but I wonder how you get the top books," Hermione commented.

"Lady Hermione, this is not the library. This is the common room. To get to the books on the catwalk, a witch or wizard can walk beneath the catwalk, stand on any of the circular stones and command them to rise. To go down again, while standing upon the catwalk, command the catwalk that you wish to go lower and the area nearest the closest raising stone will illuminate and when you stand on the lit circle, the stone below will rise up and then take you down again," Gallmonger said, "or you may call for an elf and one of us can take you up or down or find the book you seek."

"Thank you, Gallmonger," Hermione said, "That is very useful to know," causing the little elf to briefly smile at being praised.

This brought Luna back to a thought she had earlier. "Hermione? We have a problem I need help solving," she said, looking down at her shoes.

Hermione released Harry's hand and touched Luna's cheek to draw her eyes up, "What problem, Luna Love?" she asked in concern. Harry's face also displaying his concern.

"Gallmonger tells me students are telling the elves to punish themselves and many students treat the elves badly," she said.

Both girls felt an immense mountain of anger forming on Hermione's right and they looked at Harry.

Harry turned to Gallmonger, his face red, twisted in his anger, but his voice remained dangerously calm. "Gallmonger, do the elves of Hogwarts have a leader elf? Someone who coordinates all of the elves?" Harry asked.

Gallmonger, too, could feel the anger coming off Harry and cringed.

Harry realised this, "Gallmonger, I am not angry at you by any means, neither am I upset with any of the hard-working, dedicated elves of Hogwarts. I simply will not, as the head of two Founding Houses, accept the house elves of Hogwarts being treated in this manner," he explained.

Gallmonger nodded, though still nervously wrung his hands together. "The head elf's name is Chordgong," he said.

Harry knelt down, "Gallmonger, could you go to Chordgong and see if he would meet with me tonight?"

Gallmonger nodded, snapped his fingers and popped out.

Harry had time to stand before an elf that looked very much like Beltchirp stood before him, having nearly silently elf-popped in. This elf wore an incandescent white tabard with the crests of all four houses on the front and the Hogwarts crest on the back. A moment later Gallmonger popped back in and stood behind Chordgong.

Chordgong bowed, asking, "Founders Lord asked for Chordgong?"

"Arise, Chordgong and know our pleasure," Luna said formally.

"Yes, My Lady. Chordgong lives to serve Hogwarts and her Founders," he said.

Harry took up the thread of the conversation. "Chordgong, I understand some of the students tell the elves to punish themselves and others treat the elves poorly. Is this correct?" he asked.

Chordgong nodded sadly, "Many students treat elves badly."

Harry asked, "Chordgong, can I give you instructions to let the house elves know they are not to submit to punishment and are no longer to respond to the calls of students who treat them badly, unless the student will be injured or worse if they do not respond?"

Chordgong looked up at Harry with adulation on his face, "You would do this, My Lord? It is well within your right and power to ask this," he said.

Harry smiled, "I do so command this, Chordgong. Please make it known to all of the house elves. This evening if possible."

Chordgong began crying, "Never before have I met a wizard who thought so well of house elves, My Lord. Thank you," he said and silently disappeared.

Hermione nodded at Harry with approval, once more taking his hand. She then turned to her left and kissed Luna on the cheek. "That's worth a Harry hug tonight, I think, Little Moon," she said.

Luna looked at Hermione with mild surprise which transformed to a shy smile and a nod. "Thank you, Mione-Love."

Hermione then took over. "Gallmonger, is there a bedroom with a large bed for us?" she asked.

Gallmonger walked over to one of the bookcases and motioned for the three to follow him. He showed them where the release catch was for the opening, pressed it and the bookcase swung out, displaying a set of stairs.

"Thank you, Gallmonger. Could you insure the bedding is clean and have three hot cocoas ready for us?" Hermione asked.

Gallmonger nodded and was about to pop away when Hermione held up her hand. She looked first to Harry, then to Luna then back to Gallmonger and said, "Thank you for everything you have done for us tonight, Gallmonger. It is very much appreciated."

The little elf smiled, nodded his head and popped out.

With Harry's anger bled off, the three of them climbed the wide, well-lit stairs and found a landing at the top with a blank wall. They caught sight of a catch similar to the one on the bookcase below and Luna pulled it, causing the wall to swing away onto another landing with a much shorter set of stairs. Climbing the seven steps up brought them to a master suite that was the size of the common room below. All four outer walls appeared to be windows which looked down onto the castle on one side, Hogsmeade on another, the forbidden forest on the third and the great lake on the fourth. Just off the centre of the room was an enormous, waist-high bed upon a pedestal of two-shelf-high bookcases which were only partially full.

The three were somewhat surprised to see their trunks were already at the foot of the bed. Turning back to where the staircase was, there was a railing which surrounded the opening and beyond it, two doors situated between sets of windows. The girls opened one of the doors and found a luxurious bath with a swimming pool-sized tub, showers off to the left and dressing tables along the right wall. Here, too, were windows that looked out on various areas of the countryside.

Harry opened the other door and found a walk-in closet similar in size to the room behind him. There were racks of robes of every colour, including sets of robes in each of the house colours, but made of a much finer material than the normal school robes styled for both boys and girls. There was a rack of wands, another of staffs and still another of swords.

The girls ran over to their trunks and grabbed their nightshirts and clean knickers and went back into the bath.

Harry, too, left the closet, went to his trunk, took his pyjamas, toothbrush and toothpaste and knocked on the door to the bath. Getting no response, he opened it and found a huge, swimming pool-sized bath, showers on the right, dressing tables on the left. "Hermione? Luna?" he called out. Still getting no response, he closed the door behind him, walked over to one of the dressing tables and got ready for bed. There were doors between the dressing tables. Opening one, he found a lavatory. He closed the door behind him, did what needed to be done and left. He brushed his teeth, gathered up his robes and clothes he had worn, along with the sword and scabbard SilentWalker had given him and left the bath. Both girls were in the master suite calling out his name.

"I'm right here," he said, startling both girls.

"Where were you?" Hermione asked accusingly.

"I was in the bath, changing for bed," he said.

"But we just came out of there and didn't see you," Luna said.

Harry shrugged. "Magic, perhaps?" he said rhetorically, then noticed how attractive both girls looked wearing night shirts that didn't quite go to their knees.

Both girls saw him looking at them and smiled shyly.

They all jumped at the quiet pop from Gallmonger entering with a tray and three large steaming mugs of hot cocoa and a plate of petite pastries. He placed the tray on a low table surrounded by large, plush pillows.

"Thank you, again, Gallmonger," Luna said.

"Thank you," Harry and Hermione said together, then smiled at one another.

"Gallmonger is happy to serve such great people," the elf said and popped out.

The three of them sat upon the pillows, drank their cocoa and ate a pastry or three. Harry waited until both girls finished their cocoas, then stood and helped them up as well.

Hermione looked at Harry and stood behind Luna, placing her hands protectively around Luna's waist. "Harry, please don't be angry with me, but I promised Luna she would get a magical hug from you tonight for being so good to us and finding a way for us to sleep together."

Harry smiled at the two of them. "I think our Little Moon definitely deserves a reward," he purred, looking at the two girls. He walked up to Luna and took her hands and pulled her over to the bed, pulling Hermione along with them. He directed the two girls into the middle of the bed. Hermione still had her arms around Luna's waist. Harry took Luna's hands again and wrapped them around his neck. He leaned down, put his hands on her just above Hermione's arms around Luna's waist and kissed her, his mouth slightly open. Hermione kissed Luna's neck, alternating between soft, warm kisses and gentle nibbles, just like the article in one of Luna's Witches Weekly said to do.

Harry closed his eyes, found the spigot for his magic and slowly turned it on, then turned it to one-quarter.

Hermione could see Harry's magic mixing with Luna's and added a bit of her magic as well.

Luna could feel warm, delicious, oil-covered fingers running all over her body. The scent of jasmine and lilacs filled the air she was breathing. The warmth of standing in the summer sun on a brisk morning embraced her. She felt her body tingling everywhere.

Harry finished his count of thirty and turned his magic up another notch. Hermione, too, slowly ramped her magic up to match.

The oil had turned to honey and was coating every inch of her body,with soft, wet tongues following along to lap it up. The honey went everywhere, flowing into her secret places and the tongues followed. The tingling built higher. The tension in her body growing more and more.

Harry once more finished counting to thirty and turned his magic up half way. Again, Hermione slowly increased her magical hug, until she felt her magic fully mixed with Luna's and began to draw Luna's magic into her, causing her body to begin to tingle as well.

The honey warmed, ebbed and flowed. Like the tide, the power of the honey was growing. She felt it doing things to her it had never done before, going places even she had not yet explored. Awakening new and tantalizing feelings, pleasuring her in ways that were both exciting and frightening. And still her tension grew. The tingling in her body intensified to a level she had never known before.

Hermione could feel sweet, wet lips running over her. The taste of strawberries filled her mouth. The smell of cherry blossoms filled the air and strong but gentle hand stroked her head and her back.

Harry finished his count of thirty and slowly, for another count of thirty, increased the spigot to three-quarters.

Luna felt the energy of the honey increase even more, wondering how this was even possible. The pleasure she was experiencing intensified, as did the tingling, passing into territory more exciting and still and again more terrifying to her. The tension and tingling in her body felt like an enormous pressure was building within her, as if more honey were being added and was filling her secret places, and she was afraid she would be torn open, even though the pleasure was intensifying.

Hermione felt the geyser of water below her and the waterfall above her warm her and fill her, but it was filling her beyond anything she had experienced before. The pressure building within her was powerful, pleasurable and yet frightening.

Harry, taking another count of thirty, slowly turned his spigot on all the way.

Whatever the source of the honey was, the dam holding it back had burst. Luna was suddenly bathed in honey. It was up to her lower lip and was drawing her down. Suddenly she was pulled under and the universe exploded in a million billion galaxies of expanding, illuminated gas and new-born stars. She screamed as the pleasure overwhelmed her, releasing the tension, only for it to immediately build back up again, to explode again, to build up again, to explode again.

Hermione looked up in her mind as the geyser below her lifted her off her feet and carried her high into the sky, closer to the top of the waterfall. Whatever force was limiting the waterfall disappeared and a wall of warm, embracing, loving water fell on her, fighting against the geyser below. But the geyser increased in power to match the waterfall, increasing the pressure within her to a point far beyond anything she had experienced before. The tension in her body increased, causing almost unbearable levels of pleasure and suddenly the birth of the universe exploded in her mind as the pleasure overwhelmed her and even her scream of release felt as if it was tearing her throat in exquisitely pleasurable pain.

Harry opened his eyes as he heard for the first time Luna's, then Hermione's incoherent screams of release. He knew, from what he could feel from them, that he was not hurting them. He kept his magic on but slowly lowered both girls down as well as he could, until they were lying down. Both girls screamed again twice, their bodies shuddering under the onslaught of his magic. He slowly turned his magic back down, taking ten minutes until he had completely turned it off. Both girls were still shuddering in their release.

He then noticed he smelled something. A slightly metallic scent that was nevertheless irresistible in its draw. Something he had caught the barest taint of once before, the first time he had hugged Hermione. The memory of him hitting her knickers face first flashed into his mind. He felt drawn to this scent. There was something instinctual about it. Something from deep within the medulla oblongata was telling him to find this and to submerge himself in this scent but Dan and Emma's words suddenly flowed across his conscious mind, "...be respectful, take your time and do not act on your urges without thinking them through carefully..."

He shook his head vigorously. Both girls had stopped moving and both had sleepy smiles on their faces. Hermione was tightly curled around Luna. He felt this needed to be a Luna-in-the-middle night and pulled the comforter over their entwined bodies, kissed their foreheads and whispered, "Sleep sweet, My Loves."

He lay his head on the pillow, curled up behind Luna and the lights in the room went out. Harry then noticed the ceiling was enchanted to show the night sky. He closed his eyes and darkness descended.

-oOoOo-


	16. Ravenclaw, Potions and Lunch

-o-AN-o-  
>Once more, huge thanks to Claire for significant editing and improving the overall pace of the chapter.<br>Thanks to Texan-Muggle for final proofing, recommendations of linguistic nuance and helping even the maturity of the characters.  
>-o-AN-o-<br>If you don't enjoy a slight twist of lime, skip to the next set of double scene markers. There are no plans for any further significant limes until near the end of the year, as the lime juice will be removed to omakes only for those of you who enjoy them.  
>-o-AN-o-<br>-oOoOo-

-oOoOo-

Harry awoke to a soft chime. The sun was not yet coming over the horizon, but the pre-dawn glare at the horizon had begun. The girls had moved around a bit in the night. Hermione was now straddling him, her night shirt gathered above her stomach and Luna was spooned against him with her hand inside his pyjama top. Her night shirt had also ridden up quite a ways, allowing him to see far more of her than he was really comfortable with, but since his arm was pinned under her, he didn't have to worry about taking advantage of anything more than her bare back as well. He was really glad Dad hadn't made any jokes about their discussion about his morning reactions and he was relieved it was normal and was concerned when Hermione had first noticed it, but had just kissed him with a mysterious smile on her face. Luna had been more boisterous and expressive the first time she noticed. Her looking down to see what it was she was feeling then her exclamation of, "Sweet Morgana!" had him blushing for over an hour. She couldn't get the smile off her face all morning.

This morning he definitely had a morning reaction and he was using the exercises Dad had taught him to get rid of them. Since Hermione's back was bare, or mostly so, he thought this would be a great time to rub it, the way he had rubbed the lotion into her back on the beach in France. He slowly and gently began rubbing both girls' backs while continuing to perform his closed-eyes calming exercise as he buried his face in Hermione's hair. He loved the smell of her hair. He wondered what it would feel like to wash her hair. To wash Luna's hair. It was three hours before class. _I wonder if they would let me wash their hair if I asked,_ he thought.

Hermione started moaning softly in pleasure at the sensation of her back being gently rubbed. She wondered if this was Luna or Harry. _Well, I feel like I am laying on Harry. He feels like he's happy to see me this morning,_ she thought as she teasingly slid up and down thirty centimetres or so. _Most definitely__. Harry,_ she thought as the bulge she felt grew slightly. Her mother's words played across her waking mind, "_**...don't tease him. It is amazing for a boy of his age to be so restrained and that is a sign he really cares about you. Don't hurt him by teasing him about something he is trying with great effort to control...**_" She sat up, careful not to grind against him unnecessarily. She realised her night shirt had ridden up very high and noticed Harry was looking at her stomach and lower.

She looked down and realised he was looking at her white lace knickers. She quickly pulled her night shirt down. "I'm sorry, Harry. I don't mean to tease you," she said, concerned he might be angry with her.

Harry looked up at her with a smile, "I know, Hermione Love. I was going to ask you and Luna if you wouldn't mind me washing your hair this morning," he said.

Luna stretched beside him and kissed him on the cheek. She opened her eyes and looked at Hermione sitting straddled on top of Harry. Her eyes opened wide in shock.

"I'm wearing knickers, Luna," Hermione said in understanding.

Luna was blushing beet red. She shook her head and lifted herself up to a sitting position so she could pull her night shirt down.

Harry looked at her with a smile, "Don't worry, Luna. When I saw the state of your night shirt, I closed my eyes until Hermione woke up, and we've been talking so I haven't looked back at you yet."

Luna smiled shyly at Harry, "Thank you, Harry. You are ever the gentleman. Though I think I wouldn't mind you looking at me, I will defer to Hermione for when she thinks I am old enough."

Hermione looked at Luna then looked at Harry. "I think I would enjoy having my hair washed and watching you wash Luna's hair. Just no magical hugging or tickling this morning or during the week, I think. Just thinking about last night makes me all tingly again. Speaking of which," she turned her attention fully to Luna, "you were a very, very, very good girl to find a way for us to all sleep together. We are going to have to think of a suitable award for you in addition to last night's hug. Something tangible and durable, I think. Something just for you," Hermione said thoughtfully.

"Well, you two go climb in the bath, but leave a towel in the door or something to keep it from closing all the way.

-oOoOo-

Harry enjoyed washing the girls' hair. Not for the visual appeal, as both of them were submerged in the pool with a thick layer of obscuring bubble. No. His enjoyment came from seeing the relaxation and pleasure it brought to them to have him be attentive and taking care of such a basic need for them without their prompting him. Hermione was stretched out with her legs wrapped around Luna's torso and her arms wrapped around Harry's neck. He thought Hermione was going to fall asleep, her level of relaxation was so deep as he effectively massaged her scalp and shoulder while cleaning the perspiration, dander and airborne detritus from her hair and scalp. While he was doing this, she would issue soft moans and would coo at how wonderful it felt as the aroma of gardenias and the gentle massage lifted away little tensions she didn't realise she had.

He rinsed her hair using a wooden bowl he found beside the bath that seemed nearly perfect for the purpose of rinsing hair as its size was small enough for him to easily handle when filled with water.

He finished rinsing her hair and Luna, who was washing Hermione everywhere else, handed him conditioner, which Luna quietly explained would make Hermione's hair more manageable, and likely something Hermione had never taken the time to use herself as she probably thought its use was too much bother. Once he had finished putting the conditioner in, he was about to rinse it out when Luna indicated conditioner needed to be left in to allow for it to react and moisturise the strands of hair.

While he waited, he gently pulled on Hermione's arms and washed them, spending time to rub the tension out of her shoulders, arms, forearms and hands. When he was done with both of her arms, Luna indicated he could now rinse her hair, which he did.

Hermione was utterly, blissfully, happily in heaven.

Harry, a boy that, if she was completely honest with herself, she had loved since even before he saved her from the troll, was expressing his affection for her in a way she never imagined a boy would. In fact, the only other person who had ever washed her hair for her that she could remember was Mum.

And Luna. Her own attraction to the diminutive little blonde was, at first, quite strange. She wasn't sure what it was this girl had awakened in her, but in its awakening, she found someone she loved in the same fashion she loved Harry. She wanted, for good or bad, to spend the rest of her life with Luna much the same way she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Harry. Luna was currently washing her body. Something she would have been too embarrassed to have Harry do, yet she felt naughty and daring with Luna doing it as well.

Harry had just finished rinsing the conditioner from her hair. Luna was washing her torso with a wonderfully scratchy cloth. "Harry, can you hand me my wand please?" Luna asked.

Harry handed her wand to her as he slid down the steps to stand on the bottom of the bath and hold Hermione's head and shoulders above the water while Luna continued whatever it was she was doing. Harry was looking down at the look of bliss on Hermione's face.

Luna pointed her wand at Hermione's nether regions and incanted, "Depilatio," waving her wand in a figure-eight motion with a downward flick at the end.

Harry noticed Hermione's eyes shoot wide open as a tingly feeling filled her centre.

"What was that?" she asked in surprise.

Luna looked to Hermione and Harry, "Just a cleaning spell. It keeps a girl smooth for six months," Luna said cheerfully, handing Harry her wand to put on the side of the bath once more. Luna took one of Hermione's hands, interlocking her fingers with her own and gently rubbed their intertwined hands over the now-smooth area. "See how smooth it is?" Luna asked dreamily.

Hermione let out an, "Eeep!" as she realised what Luna had done. Harry noticed Hermione's exclamation just in time to see her face turn beet red.

"What's wrong, Mione-Love?" he asked.

"Nothing! Nothing at all! Luna, next time warn me about something like that," she said as she allowed her legs to release Luna's waist and her feet to touch the bottom of the bath again so she could stand. "Time for us to wash Luna, Harry," she announced.

Luna got a dreamy smile, kissed Hermione on the cheek, walked up to Harry, kissed him on the lips, turned around and melted into Harry, causing him to have to quickly wrap his arms around her bare, soapy torso. "This is so nice," Luna sighed.

Hermione smiled at Luna's antics and walked closer so Luna could wrap her legs around Hermione's waist.

Harry carefully and slowly let go, allowing the magic of the pool to hold Luna up while he poured warm water over her head to get her hair wet and then began massaging shampoo into her hair. Luna moaned appreciatively. She had loved the attention Harry and Hermione gave her and cherished, literally, every moment she spent with them. There were still times when she would wake up in the morning and have to physically reassure herself that all of this, Harry and Hermione being her best friends and her loves, wasn't all some amazing dream that her mind had created out of the desperate loneliness she had felt before. Harry and Hermione both understood this as they, too, would have similar feelings some mornings.

Harry rinsed her hair and then began massaging in the conditioner. Harry had only been able to do this twice before; both times were during the summer at the villa when Dan and Emma had slept in late and the three had gotten up especially early so Harry could satisfy his desire to do something simple to provide the girls pleasure.

Luna could hear the change in Harry's breathing as the tension left him as much as it left her at what he was doing to her head and neck. He rinsed her hair and began washing her arms and shoulders and Hermione worked on lovingly and most thoroughly inspecting then cleaning her torso.

She looked up at Luna, whose eyes were only half-open. "Luna, what was that spell you used on me?" she asked.

"The wand movement is a clockwise-starting figure-eight with a downward flick at the end and the incantation is 'Depilatio'," Luna said, anticipating the feel of the spell.

Hermione cast the spell. When Luna was able to think again, she thought Hermione must have used a bit more power than she herself normally would. The tingling and shuddering of her body lasted at least a minute and her cry of "Sweet Morgana!" would have awoken the entire dorm if they were in the Ravenclaw showers.

Hermione blushed, "I'm sorry, Luna," she said, as Luna was still quivering.

"Less... less... less power next time, Mione-Love," Luna gasped.

Harry helped Luna to stand as she released her still-shaky legs from Hermione's waist. Once she was steady on her feet, she embraced Hermione and Harry first washed Luna's back and then washed Hermione's back.

Hermione then turned around. "Your turn to get washed, Harry," she said.

Harry blushed and stuttered, "I... I... I can wash myself," he said, seemingly looking for an escape.

"Oh no, Harry. You enjoy washing us and because we didn't want to hurt Mum and Dad's feelings, we didn't wash you before. Now its time to reciprocate. Turn-about is only fair, after all," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

"Um... no... really... that isn't necessary," Harry said as Hermione walked closer, backing him up against the edge of the bath.

"Harry James Potter," Hermione whispered to him, "since you don't want Luna or me to cry because you're rejecting us, you will let us do this and you will share in our mutual enjoyment much as we share in the enjoyment of you washing us. We will then each get a non-magical hug from you and the three of us will shower off together," Harry gulped, "because I love you, Harry. Luna loves you. We, all three of us, are well aware we are too young to have a physical relationship beyond the simple, non-sexual, caring, loving touches, but when the time does come, you will not be some shy, embarrassed boy when it comes to seeing our bodies. You will know every square inch of our bodies through sight, scent, touch and taste by that point. This morning, we begin with sight. Luna and I already spoke with Mum about this and, while she is not entirely happy with it, she understands that legally we are married and we are taking our time out of our high level of respect for Mum and Daddy's wishes," Hermione said. Harry still seemed fearful. "Please, Harry? Do you find us that ugly?" Hermione asked, tears welling up in her eyes.

Harry noticed that at some point while Hermione was talking, Luna had joined her and each one of them was holding one of his hands in both of their hands. He pulled them in close and wrapped an arm around each of their waists. "I find you to both be irresistibly beautiful, Girls. Last night it took hearing Dad's and Mum's voices telling me to take my time to prevent me from... well... let's just say you both smelled intoxicating last night and I was drunk from the scent. I am afraid of losing control. I am afraid of getting to a place where I won't be able to stop myself and end up hurting or scaring one or both of you," he said, his voice quivering.

Both girls turned and pulled the other two into a three-way hug. "Harry, just the fact that you are afraid of going too far makes me feel so much safer with you. I wouldn't trust any other boy to be naked in the bath with me. I certainly wouldn't trust any boy except you naked in the bath with our Luna," Hermione said possessively, kissing his cheek.

"Harry, I love you, I trust you and I know that if I told you I wasn't ready for something, you would stop and pull me into a hug instead of continuing," Luna said, kissing his other cheek.

"You two are the absolute best, you know that, right?" Harry asked, just revelling in the love and trust these two girls had for him.

"And don't you forget it!" Hermione said then laughed, causing Luna to laugh as well.

"Now, let's get you washed," Hermione said, getting Luna's help to pull him back into the middle of the pool.

-oOoOo-

-oOoOo-

After Harry was washed and the three of them showered together under the same shower head, ostensibly to save water, or so Luna claimed, they dressed and prepared for the day. Once they were all ready, Luna called for Gallmonger and the three of them were popped into the anteroom of the Great Hall.

It was seven and there was no one at the Gryffindor table but there were several students sitting at the Ravenclaw table. "Do you think any of your house mates would mind if the three of us sat at the Ravenclaw table, Luna?" Harry asked.

"We'll just have to ask," Luna said and led them over to the Ravenclaw table.

The trio walked up to one of the Ravenclaw prefects, "Excuse me, Ms. Clearwater. Would it be acceptable if my friends sat with me for breakfast?" Luna asked.

Penelope turned at the unfamiliar voice and saw a first year Ravenclaw and two Gryffindors she easily recognised standing just behind her and to the left. "We would be both pleased and honoured to have your friends sit with you at our table this morning and any morning, and if you would, please call me Penelope. May I call you Luna?" Penelope asked, having recognised Luna from the Sorting Ceremony and the House Creation ritual the previous evening.

Luna gushed, "I would like that very much, Penelope. And this is Harry and this is Hermione," she said.

Harry and Hermione took Penelope's hand in greeting. Penelope indicated they could sit next to her if they desired, and so they did, Hermione sitting between Penelope and Luna.

"I understand the only reason you were sorted into Gryffindor, Hermione, is because your courage is stronger than your intellect. Considering you are a natural for Ravenclaw, know that I am not the only person impressed with your academic score and your intellectual abilities," Penelope stage-whispered as she handed Hermione the platter of sausage.

"How...?" Hermione was asking when Penelope looked at her full on.

"This is Ravenclaw. We keep track of our own, even if they are sorted into other houses," she said pointedly, then smiled an inviting, honest, rich smile.

Hermione blushed.

Harry was serving Luna some bacon when a taller boy sat down next to him. "Good morning Mr. Potter. Although I am surprised to see you sitting with us at Ravenclaw table this morning, I am also pleased," Roger Davies said, "May I have two pieces of bacon as well?" he asked in a gentlemanly fashion.

Harry placed two pieces of bacon on Roger's plate and served himself two pieces before passing the platter across the table to a waiting boy.

Now that Harry's hands were empty, Roger held his hand out to shake Harry's. Harry took Roger's hand and Roger very carefully shook Harry's hand firmly, but without crushing it. "Please call me Roger," he said.

"Call me Harry," Harry said with a smile. He then gestured to Luna, "You likely already know Luna Lovegood... "

"Yes, Lady Luna Lovegood and Ms. Hermione Granger. I am not as well acquainted with Ms. Lovegood, but everyone in Ravenclaw was impressed when Lady Helena Ravenclaw spoke with her last evening before Ms. Lovegood disappeared to the Founders' Quarters. Ms Granger I am only familiar with by reputation and am suitably impressed by her as well. You sit amongst auspicious company, Harry," Roger said, meaning the two girls.

"They are my best friends," Harry said with a smile.

The two boys discussed Quidditch while the three girls discussed arithmancy, ancient runes and how the combination of the two in practical applications led to breakthroughs in spell development.

It was some minutes into a conversation about the subtle nuances of the function of two different arithmantic theorems when Professor Flitwick finally managed to get their attention. "Ladies, I am most incredibly impressed and humbled. I was going to tell you I was looking forward to seeing Ms. Granger and Mr. Potter in second year Charms Friday morning and I overhear the three of you having a conversation about the Sigmatic-Delta quadrant theorem and the Gammatic-Delta theorem usage and synergies, something I wouldn't expect even two fifth year students discussing. If the three of you would like to do an extra credit project for Arithmancy, I am certain I could talk Professor Vector into discussing it with you," an excited Professor Flitwick said.

Hermione's and Penelope's eyes lit up at this. "We would be appreciative of that, Professor Flitwick," Penelope said.

"I shall do so straight away then. Let me also say how happy I am to see the inter-house mingling at meals, especially the two of you, Mr. Potter and Mr. Davies. I am impressed that, while you are on different Quidditch teams, you seem to see it merely as a game and nothing more," Filius said.

"Well, Sir, Harry is first, and foremost, a student, as am I. I would rather have a friendly game with my fellow students than," and Roger looked over at the Slytherin table, "worry about members of the other team trying to kick my teeth out," he said meaningfully.

Filius followed Roger's gaze and nodded, "I know of what you speak, Mr. Davies and I promise you Professor McGonagall and I have had a conversation with Professor Snape concerning this very topic and I believe you will find certain things which, in the past, were given a blind eye will no longer be acceptable."

As if mentioning her name called her over, Professor McGonagall stepped up next to Professor Flitwick. "Good morning, Professor Flitwick, Ms. Clearwater, Ms. Granger, Ms. Lovegood, Mr. Potter, Mr. Davies. I cannot tell you how good it is to see members of two houses harmoniously joined in the breaking of bread," she said with a smile.

"Good morning, Professor McGonagall," the five students said, nearly synchronized.

"Roger and I have been having a brilliant conversation about Quidditch, Professor McGonagall. He's even given me a few tips to use against Hufflepuff," Harry said.

"I did?" Roger exclaimed in astonishment.

"Well, perhaps you didn't mean to, but you were telling me how their beaters tend to aim ahead of the opposing Seeker and to be on the lookout for that as well as how Summerby does a number of false dives, but is timid of getting too close to the ground or the stands at high speed and that I should essentially try to get him nervous by diving and staying close in at high speeds," Harry said excitedly.

Roger looked at Harry closely. "Are you certain you weren't meant to be sorted into Ravenclaw?" He asked seriously.

"Well, be that as it may, Mr. Potter, I wanted to give you and Ms. Granger your time tables and I find myself also suitably impressed with the level of camaraderie Gryffindor and Ravenclaw are demonstrating this morning. Twenty points to both houses for showing the true intent of the houses: To recognise our similar strengths yet to found friendships amongst the houses to form synergistic relationships wherein the whole is greater than the sum of the parts," McGonagall said proudly. Flitwick was also smiling, indicating he felt the same way.

"Ms. Lovegood, since you were unavailable last evening, here is your timetable as well. Should you need assistance finding your way to any of your classes, please ask any Ravenclaw student or any prefect. Oh, of course Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger would likely assist you as well," he said.

Luna took Hermione's hand and Harry's hand. "My two best friends are always helping me," she said, then kissed each of them on their cheek.

Filius smiled, but Minerva seemed somewhat surprised at Luna's overt display of affection. "Well, we should go break our fast before class and I see you are almost done with your meal," McGonagall said.

"Yes, Professor. We wanted to introduce Luna to Madam Pince and show her where the library is before class," Hermione explained.

The two professors said their farewells and headed to the staff table.

Roger caught Penelope's attention and motioned to the three younger students. Penelope nodded. "Would you mind company?" Roger asked.

"Company would be exquisite," Luna answered, a dreamy smile on her face.

The five of them gathered their things and headed to the library. They passed two separate trios of older Slytherins in the halls on their way, but all they received were spiteful glares. Madam Pince was just unlocking the entrance to the library as the five arrived.

"Good morning, Madam Pince," Penelope said.

"Ms. Clearwater, it is good to see you. And Ms. Granger, you as well. Good morning Mr. Potter and Mr. Davies," she said. She then looked at Luna, who was in the middle. "And this must be Ms. Lovegood, for whom Lady Helena could not say enough nice things about last evening when we had tea," she said, smiling kindly at the young witch.

Luna curtseyed, "A pleasure to meet you, Madam Pince. Ms. Granger has told me many wonderful things about you," she said, causing Madam Pince to smile at Hermione.

"Well do come in. I am just opening for the morning, though I must say I am surprised at you all coming down here first thing on the first day of term," Madam Pince said, ushering them through the opened doors.

The four of them showed Luna around the library and then Penelope, Roger and Harry pointed out what they referred to as "Hermione's corner", the largest study table situated in the corner furthest from the entrance. Hermione had the good grace to blush as she explained her reasons for gravitating to this location.

"When Luna brings you into the Ravenclaw common room, you may find you have an all-new favorite corner," Penelope said with a smile.

"Oh, I already do," Hermione said mysteriously, looking at Luna with a smile. Both Penelope and Roger raised an eyebrow at this but said nothing, although Harry saw the expressions.

Hermione looked up at the clock as it chimed half eight, "Harry and I should head down to the dungeons," she gave a disgusted look, "double potions with Slytherin," she said, looking at her time table. "Luna, what do you have this morning?" she asked.

"Herbology followed by Defence Against the Dark Arts; both with Hufflepuff" Luna replied.

"We both have Ancient Runes. It's a mixed class of all four houses," Penelope explained.

"Luna, we'll walk you to the Great Hall. That's where Professor Sprout typically gathers the first years for her class," Harry said.

Roger and Penelope made their farewells and headed to class, while Harry, Hermione and Luna entered the Great Hall, as a loud screeching could be heard, "...not even Fred and George managed to get into so much trouble on the first day of term that I received a note from their head of house. You will hold yourself with the airs of a gentleman or you will be leaving Hogwarts and home schooled. Is that clear, Ronald! Bilius! Weasley!" The trio entered just as the howler exploded, causing Ron's face to be covered in soot and his hair to be blown back.

Harry looked sad for his former friend, "I wonder what he did?"

Hermione looked disapproving, "How a parent could do that to their child in front of the entire school is beyond me."

"Poor Ginny," Luna said, drawing the attention of her two loves to the youngest Weasley, who was gathering her things in a desperate attempt to disassociate herself from her brother and leave the Great Hall.

The three saw Professor Sprout near the the doors leading out onto the entrance hall. Harry and Hermione left Luna with Professor Sprout and promises of lunch together. The two then headed to the dungeons for double potions.

They arrived with plenty of time to find their seats and watched as Professor Snape wrote the assignment on the board. Hermione already had her parchment and quill out and was copying the assignment from the board.

Severus was almost finished with writing that day's potions instructions. He knew Hermione had entered the classroom when he heard a quill scratching upon parchment. A small smile came to his lips for a moment, as she reminded him very much of Lily Evans.

Once he had completed writing the instructions, he schooled his features once again and looked up at the clock. Two minutes to class. Two minutes until he had to, once more, become a ruthless bastard. This year, however, he would not be playing favourites.

As the clock struck nine, a nondescript man in plain, brown robes entered the room and closed the door. He sat on a stool near the door, his face hidden in the depths of his cowl.

At the sound of the door closing, Severus turned around. He saw, with satisfaction, that as the door closed both Hermione and Harry and put their quills down and sat up attentively. Several others, he noted were not that bright. Sadly, many of them were his snakes.

"Put your quills down, your wands away and remain attentive for the next three and a half hours," Severus said, a sneer upon his face. A veritable cacophony of settling quills occurred, except one. Pansy Parkinson continued to copy from the board. Severus' demeanour remained calm, however he was quick with his wand. Pansy found her quill ripped from her fingers and embedded in the ceiling. She looked up in frightened surprise. "Ms. Parkinson, precisely what part of 'put your quills down' did you fail to understand?" Severus asked, drawing the girl's attention back to him.

Several people snickered, including some Slytherins.

Severus was not amused. "Is there something amusing about being reprimanded for failing to listen?" he asked rhetorically, looking about the room. "I should think all of you would be considering this class more seriously, considering this is the second year of Potions and mistakes can be dangerous," he said, walking past Neville.

"For those of you who failed to notice, I would like to point out we have a visitor in our class today. Inspector Winston is here from the Hogwarts Board of Governors to ensure the safety and operation of the school is impeccable. Should I find anyone," he looked specifically at Draco, "and I do mean anyone," he moved on, "causing trouble or endangering the class, they will be most upset with the consequences."

He looked around the room and smiled inwardly, seeing Draco's smirk.

"Copy today's assignment to your potions manual and begin your work," Severus said. He watched as Hermione and Harry took only a few minutes to complete their copying and walk to their cauldron. Several of the other students who had arrived early also completed their copying and went to their cauldrons. As Severus was walking past Pansy, he waved his wand and slowly lowered her quill from the ceiling to her desk. "Ms. Parkinson, in the future, please make a point of paying attention to my instructions. I shall let this incident pass without detention. Please complete copying today's assignment and begin brewing your potion with your partner," he said.

Ronald Weasley chose this moment to enter the classroom in food-stained robes. "I'm sorry I was late, Professor," Ron said absently, heading to sit next to his normal potions partner, Seamus.

Severus pinned him with a glare. "Sorry, Mr. Weasley? Apologies for disrupting the first class of the second year should be contrite and heartfelt. I can assure you that once you complete your detention over the next week of preparing potion ingredients with Professor Sprout, you will make it a primary goal to never, ever be late to potions again," Severus said.

"A week? That's not..." Ron complained but was cut off by a now-irate Potions Master.

"Mr. Weasley, this is Hogwarts, not the Burrow. This is Potions, not your mother's kitchen. There is no discussion of your detention unless you would like it to extend beyond the week you will serve. Should you argue with me further or comment negatively about a punishment you deserve for your failing to be in a class your parents paid this school for you to be in, then in addition to any punishment, I will personally ensure Deputy Headmistress McGonagall writes to your mother. The only reason I am not removing house points due to your tardiness is that I would not see your entire house punished for your own inadequacies. Now, sit, copy the board to your potions manual and once you have completed copying the instructions, work with your partner on the potion and not one more word in argument," Severus said, trying to keep the disgust out of his voice.

Severus began walking amongst the the cauldrons and came to Hermione and Harry, who were standing in their normal positions with Hermione between Harry and Neville. "Ms. Granger, I will have no objection with you assisting both your partner as well as your house mates next to you. Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger, Mr. Longbottom, I would appreciate your waiting after class a few moments to have a brief discussion," Severus said quietly, the expression on his face belying the gentleness of his words.

He stalked back up to the front of the classroom. He turned just as Draco threw a thistle pod towards Harry and Hermione's cauldron. Severus' wand flashed into his hand, freezing the pod in mid-air. All eyes in the classroom seemed to be on the thistle pod. Severus walked over to the pod with a piece of parchment and allowed it to fall on the parchment.

Severus looked at it, then looked at the brown-cloaked figure in the back of the room and then looked at Draco with a piercing glare. "Mr. Malfoy, would you care to explain yourself?" Severus asked.

Draco had been smirking right up until the pod had stopped mid-arc and frozen. "Sir?" he asked.

"Mr. Malfoy, were I to view my memory of the source of this pod," he gestured towards the parchment, "from whom do you think I would see it depart?" Severus asked in a deceptively mild fashion.

"I don't know, Sir," Draco answered neutrally. _Still believing himself untouchable,_ Severus thought.

Severus walked over to Harry and Hermione and removed a bottle full of the mixture from their cauldron with one hand, carefully keeping the thistle pod away from the cauldron. He once more walked up to the front of the room, turned and set the glass vial on the counter. He drew his wand and cast an unbreakable spell on the glass. "Your attention up here a moment unless you are at either step five or step nine in the brewing of the potion for the first part of class," he said. Every eye in the room was on him. "Please note what would have happened had this foolishness been allowed to be perpetrated," he said, dropping the thistle pod into the vial and taking several steps back. There was a slight sucking sound from the vial as air rushed into it at an incredible rate, then a ceiling-high, purple flame burned with a roar for half a minute

After the flame died down, the stone of the counter continued to glow for some minutes. "Had this actually landed in the cauldron of someone who had completed step nine, likely the person who tossed it in the air would not have survived to perform the detention they will be doing for the next two weeks," Severus said, looking around the classroom, his eyes finally looking at Draco. "Continue working on your potions with the goal of having completed through step twelve within the hour," he said, then walked directly to Draco.

"Mr. Malfoy, your father asked I assist you in embracing the values Salazar Slytherin held his house to. Tonight, and for the next two weeks, the tasks Master Filch has you performing should help to free your mind to determine both what those qualities are as well as determine down which road you will travel to better hone those skills. In two weeks, I will expect a well-written essay from you of at least six metres explaining what those qualities are and which road you have chosen. To say I am disappointed in you today would be a grossly inadequate statement. Concentrate on achieving adequacy with your potion work," Severus said, looking at the expression of utter horror on Draco's face at the thought of doing anything for Master Filch. As Severus turned to walk away, Draco's expression turned from one of horror to one of hatred as he stared at Severus' back. At Severus' next words, the look of fear returned. Without turning back to Draco, Severus said, "and Mr. Malfoy, should I see you use THAT expression at my back again, I shall have Master Filch take you out during a Hogsmeade weekend and help clean the thestral paddock without the use of magic. Never attempt to rise above your betters." He then continued walking through the class, giving hints and pointers here and there.

"You all have one hour before our break. Please continue to work cautiously and safely. Raise your hand when you have completed your potion and have two capped vials ready for me," Severus said.

Harry, Hermione, Neville and Dean immediately raised their hands. On the other side of the room Daphne Greengrass, her partner Tracey Davis, Blaise Zabini and his partner Pansy Parkinson had their hands raised.

Severus looked about the room once more, judging how many people would complete the potion before the end of the period. He walked up to the four Slytherins. "Please bottle twelve additional pairs of vials for your fellow Slytherins who will likely not complete their potions in time," he said to the four Slytherins quietly. He then walked to the Gryffindor side of the room and asked the same of the four Gryffindors.

Once they were done bottling the extra sets of potions, he collected the vials and asked the eight students to vanish the remaining contents of their cauldrons and clean up before the end of the period. While the Slytherins expected this, the four Gryffindors were somewhat surprised, although pleasantly so.

Before the hour was over, only three additional pairs of Gryffindors and four additional pairs of Slytherin completed the potion.

As the period ended, Severus walked to the front of the room and took note of the stage in brewing the pairs of students were at and marked it appropriately on his ledger. He then addressed the class. "Please stop and pay attention, class. The first half of the period is over. While several of you completed the potion as expected, the majority of the class has not. If you successfully brewed the potion to step nine, you will receive an Acceptable for this period. If you successfully brewed the potion to step five, you will receive a Dreadful for this period. If you did not reach step five, I have no choice but to award you a Troll for this period. For anyone receiving less than an Acceptable for this period, I will be available this Saturday morning for you to repeat the brewing process for the potion. The highest grade you will be able to achieve from attempting to complete the potion on Saturday will be an Exceeds Expectations. For those of you who successfully completed brewing the potion this morning, you have been awarded an Exceeds Expectations. Eight of you, two pairs from each house, received Outstandings and were kind enough to brew and bottle enough potion for the second part of today's class to share with your house mates. You also have my thanks as well as five points for each of you to your houses," Severus said. He took one last look around the room, noting Hermione's ear-to-ear smile, which made Severus feel as if he had atoned a small amount, for the pain he caused Cecilia, the child ghost who haunted him in the late hours of the evening.

"You are now dismissed for fifteen minutes. Please exit with courtesy and dignity," he said, opening the doors to the room with his wand.

The students exited the room with much greater calm than he was used to. He went to each cauldron whose potions were only partially completed, noted once again the stage at which the potion stood and promptly vanished the contents of each cauldron.

-oOoOo-

At the start of the second half of potions, Severus began by asking, "How many of you have read 'Materia Magica'?"

All of the Slytherins raised their hands. Only Hermione raised her hand in Gryffindor.

"How many of you own your own copy?" he asked.

Every Slytherin raised their hand. No one in Gryffindor did so.

A copy of the book appeared in front of each Gryffindor. "I was recently provided with a gift of a number of copies of this book and am providing them to you in an effort to reduce the number of brewing-related accidents in this class in the future. I will also be informing you of which potion or potions we will be brewing in the following class at the end of each class so that you have an opportunity to read about the potion, its ingredients, brewing methods and important considerations of the particular potion and its contents," he said. "Before I begin discussing this period's work, is there anyone who can tell me the correct method of preventing the energetic reaction thistle pods have when introduced to first period's potion?"

Only Hermione raised her hand. "Ms. Granger, what is your answer?" Severus asked.

"Sir, adding a minimum of three drops of human blood to the mixture during its energy-gathering period will cause the mixture to solidify, expanding only slightly in the process as it forms a crystalline matrix," Hermione said.

"Very good, Ms. Granger. Five points to Gryffindor. Tell me, Ms. Granger. Had you not seen the thistle pod but only witnessed the energy-gathering stage, what would you have done?" Severus asked.

"Sir, the only thing I know of which causes that specific reaction is thistle pods and in two of the three reactions, human blood reduces the danger of the reaction. In the third case, human blood does not have a negative reaction and is considered a neutral additive. I would have used my herb knife to cut open my thumb and fed blood to the reaction," Hermione explained.

"Please take another five points for Gryffindor, Ms. Granger, for your explanation and clear understanding of today's work," Severus said, then addressed the remainder of the room. "I will expect all of you to have Ms. Granger's demonstrated understanding of the next assignment in potions. Failure to do so would result in a detention with Professor Sprout. There will be a brief quiz on the potion we will be brewing at the beginning of our next class together," Severus said.

Severus explained the assignment, indicated which pages within 'Materia Magica' the potion was discussed and indicated the class begin their work. "As you complete the assignment, please raise your hands and I shall come to collect your work," he said.

The class worked quietly during the second half of potions with the same four Gryffindors and four Slytherins completing their work well ahead of the remainder of the class.

At the end of class, Severus dismissed the students. Harry, Hermione and Neville waited as Severus had asked, while the rest of the students left. Harry noted Draco giving him an evil eye as he left the room.

Once only the three Gryffindors and Severus were left in the room, Severus closed the doors, sealed them with a locking spell and then cast six privacy wards: one on each wall, one on the floor and the final one on the ceiling.

He then walked to where the three students were standing and addressed them. "Mr. Longbottom, Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger. It pains me to have to say this, but I wish to apologise to all three of you for the way in which I treated the three of you last year. I have come to understand I was, at best, unkind, and at the worst, vindictive and destructive." He bowed then stood once more.

Neville was actually smiling. "Apology accepted, Potions Master Snape," he said formally.

Hermione had been somewhat shocked with Severus' almost even-handedness during potions and more so with him apologising. "Yes, Sir. Apology accepted," she said.

"Apology accepted, Potions Master Snape," Harry said, "and I hope any enmity between us in the past shall remain in the past."

All three students were shocked when Severus actually smiled, then once more schooled his features as he said, "Any enmity between us, Mr. Potter, is likely my doing. I, too, wish to keep in the past that enmity," he said. He looked up at the clock. It was ten minutes into the lunch period. "You should all go and eat lunch," he said, removing the privacy charms, unlocking the doors, opening them and gesturing to the three to exit.

The three students bid him their thanks and left.

_Bloody Gryffindor courage,_ Severus thought as he vanished the remainder of the contents of the cauldrons and called the house elves to clean the classroom for the next period.

-oOoOo-

Hermione had Harry by the hand and was practically dragging him along to the Great Hall. Neville, too, was straining to keep up with his friends. When they got there, Hermione's eyes sought out Luna. She looked at the Ravenclaw table and saw her. She noted that Penelope and Roger were sitting near her, as were most of the sixth and seventh year Ravenclaws, all of whom seem to be enraptured by whatever animated conversation Luna was having with the Ravenclaw ghost, The Gray Lady and, shockingly, the Slytherin ghost, The Bloody Baron. When Luna, too, caught sight of Hermione and Harry, she stopped mid-sentence for a moment, then finished her thought.

"You two go on over," Neville said, "I, myself, am going to join Susan at the Hufflepuff table." Neville smiled as Harry and Hermione walked to the Ravenclaw table. Neville walked over to the Hufflepuff table and sat in the space Susan and Hannah had left between them.

As the two Gryffindors approached, they noted the only one at the table who seemed to notice them was Luna. The conversation she was having with Helena and The Bloody Baron, with interjections by others within the house, sounded as if Hermione would be joining in the discussion shortly.

"...and that's the reason the two rune clusters have such a powerful interaction when performing enchantments upon items that have had them carved into opposite sides. The magical energy concentrates slightly each time it reflects, until the level overcomes the containment nature of the base material and escapes, often causing the destruction of some or all of the base material," Luna was saying.

"So the rune clusters, themselves, are acting to focus the magic from the moment the second cluster has been completed?" a random sixth year asked.

"Or so it would seem. From the experiments I completed, the energy began concentrating either at the point of completion, or slightly before, causing me to believe the two clusters combined could affect both time and space," the Bloody Baron said.

As expected, room opened up on either side of Luna as the Ravenclaws noticed Harry and Hermione. They sat down on either side of Luna and each of them kissed her cheeks. As Harry predicted, Hermione entered the conversation as well, causing Harry to smile. While he understood none of what was being discussed, it was clear to him the members of Ravenclaw house were impressed with his girls' knowledge.

When a lull in the conversation occurred, Luna took the opportunity to introduce Hermione and Harry. "My Lord and Lady," Luna said to the two ghosts, "this is Hermione Jane Granger and Lord Harry James Potter. Harry and Hermione, this is Lady Helena Natasha Lovegood, The Gray Lady of Ravenclaw and Sir Raynor Sterling Tobfell, The Bloody Baron of Slytherin."

The sound of a dozen quills scratching across parchment could be heard as many of the surrounding students had been taking notes, _likely copying every word said, _Harry thought.

While many in Ravenclaw couldn't tear their attention away from the cerebral and historic conversation taking place, Penelope took note of the proprietary way Hermione wrapped an arm around Luna's waist and the little smile that crossed Luna's face when Hermione had sat next to her. Luna's smile increased a bit when Harry sat beside her as well. With a raised eyebrow, _Interesting,_ was the word which crossed her mind.

Harry felt the need to interrupt, as he had seen neither Hermione nor Luna eat anything yet. When the next lull in the conversation occurred, Harry said, "With all due respects, Lady Helena, Sir Tobfell, these two girls need their lunch to stay healthy. I would invite both of you to our quarters this weekend to continue this discussion."

"Harry, I believe I speak for most, if not all, of Ravenclaw when I say you and Hermione are invited to join us in the Ravenclaw common room to allow all of us to join in the discussions," Roger said.

"Thank you, Roger," Harry said. "Lady Helena, Sir Tobfell, if you both are willing, perhaps this Saturday in the Ravenclaw common room could see a continuation of this conversation?" Harry asked.

"That sounds most delightful," Lady Helena said.

"And it would be my pleasure as well, Lord Potter," Sir Tobfell said.

"Then we shall see you then," Harry said, bowing his head. The two ghosts evaporated before the eyes of the Ravenclaws.

Hermione looked a bit disappointed, but Luna was happy to get more of Hermione's attention.

Harry, however, wanted his girls to eat. "Please eat some lunch, you two," he said, pointedly looking at Hermione and gesturing with his eyes at Luna.

Hermione picked up a plate, filled it and put it in front of Luna, then took another plate and, filling it, began her lunch.

Satisfied they were eating, Harry took a plate himself and began his lunch. _Girls! Sheesh!_ he thought, eating away at his bacon and roast beef sandwich.

-oOoOo-


	17. Weasleys, Birthdays and Sleep

-o-POLL-o-  
>I currently have a poll open regarding the Teen versus Mature rating of this story. Please share your opinion!<br>-o-POLL-o-

-o-AN-o-  
>I had planned to wait until tomorrow to publish this chapter, but I am about to get on a 9-hour flight and, being the ever-pessimistic person, I wanted to make it available to you. I hope you enjoy this and all future chapters and stories.<br>Thanks again to Claire and Cheral for the editing. Some people like details so I didn't take all of their suggestions in cutting.  
>Thanks to texan-muggle for proofing the chapter yet again.<br>-o-AN-o-

-oOoOo-

Harry, Hermione and Luna fell into a pattern. They slept together, although whomever was in the middle seemed to change nightly. They ate breakfast at the Gryffindor table. Luna tried several times to draw Ginny into conversations, but the youngest Weasley seemed aloof and would rush through her meal and leave any time one of her brothers would appear. They ate lunch with Luna at the Ravenclaw table, generally surrounded by Penelope and Roger, much to Oliver Wood's annoyance. The one time Oliver had mentioned anything about it, he had threatened Harry with being kicked from the team. Unfortunately for Oliver, this was done within hearing range of Professor McGonagall, who explained, in no uncertain terms, that Oliver had not only overstepped his authority, but was attempting to penalise a student for exhibiting behaviour the school was trying to reinforce. She also pointed out the folly of threatening a seeker who had never failed to catch the snitch in every game he had ever played in. Oliver was duly embarrassed and apologised to Harry, although it rankled him whenever he saw Harry and Roger talking at lunch.

Harry had also noticed a pretty girl in Ravenclaw, Padma Patil, Parvati's sister, frequently sat directly across from him during lunch. Although she did not join in any conversation he, Hermione or Luna were in, she was clearly listening to them and frequently stole glances at Hermione and Luna, though a time or two he had quickly looked up and saw her looking at him. She would immediately look down at her plate with a slight hint of a blush on her cheeks.

It was during breakfast on Friday that Harry earned his first detention. The three of them sat in their normal spot and were chatting with one another. Ginny came in and sat next to Luna, who, once again, tried including Ginny in their conversations.

All was going well until Ron walked past, heard Luna ask Ginny a question, noted Ginny was rushing through her meal and decided to make his feelings known. "Leave my sister alone, you little freak! Go sit over with the rest of the stuck-up birds and leave Gryffindor alone," he said.

At the word 'freak', Luna looked down at her plate and began to cry. Hermione was mid-way through drawing her wand when Harry gripped her wrist. "This is my responsibility, Loves," he said and stood.

"Weasley, I told you last year to never speak to Hermione, me or my friends ever again. Now you owe Lady Lovegood an apology," Harry said.

"Oh? Did I hurt the little freak's feelings? Tough!" Ron said, taking a step closer to Harry so the two were almost touching, Ron looked up and down at Harry. "You know, maybe Malfoy is right. You're just a cowardly scarhead," he said and roughly pushed Harry away, causing Harry to stumble.

"Mr. Weasley!" Professor McGonagall shouted, but Harry didn't hear her.

He didn't hear Hermione shout, "No! Harry!"

All he heard was the blood rushing to his head, Luna's crying and the growl of an enraged beast somewhere in the depths of his mind. For Harry, it seemed to take an eternity as he got to his feet, pulled his wand and cast a banishing spell. For everyone else who saw it, it looked as if Harry apparated to a standing position, a spell already leaving his wand.

Ron flew across the hall, hit the floor and slid into the far wall. Hitting the floor slowed him down considerably so that when he hit the far wall, he was only stunned instead of killed.

Harry's world returned to normal as he realised what he had done. The Great Hall was silent except for the harsh tapping of Professor McGonagall's shoes across the stone floor. She and Professor Snape were beside Harry in a moment. Madam Pomfrey was beside Ron in the same instant.

"Mr. Potter. I am incredibly disappointed in your egregious display. For your part in this, twenty points from Gryffindor and a detention tonight with," and she looked up at the head table for a moment, where the other teachers were looking at the events unfolding,"Professor Lockhart, and an apology to the entirety of Gryffindor house tomorrow at breakfast," McGonagall said. She then stormed over to where Ron still lay upon the floor.

"Mr. Potter, I believe you have someone who needs your attention at the moment," Severus said before following Minerva.

Harry looked down at Luna and Hermione. Hermione had her arms wrapped around Luna. Harry noticed Ginny had fled and Parvati was on Luna's other side, also holding the younger girl. Harry stood behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. He leaned down and kissed her behind the ear and whispered, "I'm sorry, Little Moon. Please don't cry. I didn't mean to get so angry. He just said... and I..." Harry stopped speaking as he felt nothing he could say would ameliorate the situation.

Luna spoke, and although it sounded as if it was just above a whisper, Harry, Hermione and Parvati clearly heard what she said. "I didn't think that word still had so much power over me," she said, her tears slowing. Parvati moved back and gestured for Harry to sit in the space she just vacated. Harry nodded his thanks and sat. Luna turned on the bench and moved to sit in his lap, Hermione scooting closer to keep her arms around Luna.

"It's not your fault, Harry," Hermione said, "though you have a fierce temper. Doesn't he, Little Moon?"

Although a few tears were still falling, Luna smiled at her nickname. "Yes, and he is over-protective," Luna said shyly, "which a girl could get used to."

Harry disengaged one arm from Luna and pulled Hermione in tighter to himself.

Hermione then smiled. She then began laughing, trying to stifle it with a hand over her mouth.

"What's so funny, Hermione-Love," Harry asked.

"At least you didn't make him explode. It took Luna almost an hour to get Cornish Pixie out of my hair Wednesday night. Trying to get Weasley out of my hair would have taken forever!" she said, her laughter renewed.

Luna and Parvati also began laughing. Harry, too, laughed at Hermione's graphic joke.

-oOoOo-

At breakfast the following morning, Errol, the Weasley's geriatric owl came flying, if smacking into the sill of the owl door at the top of the Great Hall could be considered flying, into the Great Hall and landed, if falling from the sill and crashing onto the table could be considered a landing, and drug himself over to in front of Harry and released the red, smoking envelope. Before it could get started, Hermione had her wand in her hand and cast a spell at it. The howler skittered across the table and stopped directly in front of Ron. It began screeching, "How could you do that to a defenceless boy? He is only in second year and you do that to him? WHAT? WERE? YOU? THINKING?" and promptly exploded, covering Ron with soot, blasting his hair back and turning the food on his plate into a splattered, liquefied mess all over him and Seamus. All of the Gryffindors who could watched as Seamus' plate flew across that Great Hall in a grand arc and splattered on the robes of a seventh year Slytherin.

The Slytherin slowly stood and turned around. The silence in the hall as he walked to the Gryffindor table was only disturbed by the sound of muck dripping from the back of his robes. He firmly grabbed Ron by the back of the neck of his robes, picked him up off the bench and turned him around. "Your name's Weasley, right?" the Slytherin asked.

Ron was utterly terrified. "Y... y... y... yes," he managed to stutter out as the Slytherin's expression caused Ron to lose control over his bowel and bladder, causing a stench at that end of the table.

"Well, Weasley, look at my face very closely and remember it. If you should see me in the Great Hall during a meal, do not come in. Go outside. and walk around the lake twice and then come back. If I am still here, walk another lap around the lake. Do it slowly. Do it carefully. I would really hate to see what would happen to you if I was eating and you received another howler at the table. It would be a terrible shame," the Slytherin said, dropping Ron to the floor. He then turned to Seamus, "Do you know any cleaning charms?"

Before Seamus could say a word, Malfoy saved him. "McAfee, you don't want him casting anything on you. He's the one that crisped his feather," Malfoy shouted, likely saving McAfee's robes and Seamus' life.

McAfee had half-turned to listen to Draco, then put his hand on Seamus' shoulder. "Never mind, friend. I'd rather have muck-covered robes than the alternative," he said. He then walked up to where Harry, Hermione and Luna were sitting and leaned down.

"Excuse me, Miss," McAfee said to Hermione, "do you know any cleaning charms?"

Hermione nodded. The Slytherin turned around and Hermione cast the spell to clean and press his robes.

He turned back around, faced her and bowed respectfully. "Thank you, Miss. Nice aim with the howler, by the way," he said. He was about to walk away when Malfoy shouted out to him, "Quit being friendly with the mudblood, McAfee."

McAfee stood up to his full height of just over two metres and turned around to look at Malfoy. Using a blood-related derogatory term to the son of two squibs was quite probably the wrong thing to do. He cast a Sonorus on himself. "Malfoy, levitate your plate," he said.

"What?" A confused Draco asked.

"Levitate your plate, Malfoy," McAfee said.

Malfoy looked around at the people sitting next to him. "What?" he asked again in confusion.

McAfee looked piercingly at Malfoy and drew his wand and pointed it at the table next to Malfoy's plate. "Draw your wand and levitate your plate, Malfoy," he repeated.

The professors knew McAfee was a quiet, contemplative lad and not one prone to violence so, as a group they sat and watched events unfold as they finished their breakfasts.

Draco looked at McAfee's wand and noted it appeared to be pointed at him. "What?" he asked again, trying to get his unasked question answered.

"What country are you from, Malfoy?" McAfee asked, wiping a bit of fluff out of his eye.

Draco looked even more confused. "What?" he asked.

"I've never heard of the country of What. Do they speak English there?" McAfee asked.

Draco was now thoroughly confused. "What?"

McAfee cast an underpowered reductor spell at the pumpkin in the middle of the table in front of Draco, splattering him with bits of it.

"English, you imbecile. The language I am trying to get you to understand. Do you speak English?" McAfee asked, beginning to lose patience with the blonde ponce.

Draco looked at McAfee's wand, nervousness creeping into his voice. "What?" he asked, his voice raising in pitch.

McAfee cast a reductor spell at the table, blowing splinters all over the second year Slytherins and sending a cloud of tiny splinters into the skin of Draco's forearms and cheeks. Draco screamed in pain and terror. "English. Do you understand it?" McAfee asked.

"Y... y... y... yes," Draco said loudly in pain and panic.

"Then you understand what I am saying. Cast a levitation spell, Malfoy, on your plate," McAfee said.

Draco was in pain from the splinters in his face and arms and was thanking the Goddess he had closed his eyes when he saw the spell coming. It had, however addled him. "What?" he asked, the fear, pain and incomprehensible nature of another Slytherin casting a spell at him overloading his mind.

McAfee was getting a bit annoyed with the ponce and hit the pumpkin in front of Pansy with a reductor spell, once again splattering Draco, and now Pansy with liquified fruit. "Lift the arm of your robe, pull your wand from its holster on your arm, point the wand at your plate and levitate your plate off the table," McAfee growled.

Draco pulled his wand out but was in too much shock to actually cast a spell. In his trembling effort he dropped his wand.

"Mr. McAfee, what is the meaning of this?" Professor Snape asked, walking over to where McAfee was standing, his wand now pointed at Draco's arm.

"Just proving a point about blood purity and ability, Professor," McAfee said, looking at Draco and casting a scourgifying spell on Draco's arms and face to remove the splinters, causing Draco to scream out in excruciating agony. McAfee had conveniently forgotten to cast the usual numbing spell beforehand. "Pathetic," he said, looking at the now-crying Malfoy heir.

McAfee turned his head, but did not turn his wand towards Hermione.

"Ms. Granger, since Lord Potter has his wand pointed at my head and Lady Lovegood has her wand pointed at my torso and Lord Longbottom, Ms. Bones, Ms. Abbot and the entire Ravenclaw table have their wands covering the remainder of the Slytherin table, would you please help me prove my point and levitate your plate?" McAfee asked respectfully.

Hermione nodded and levitated her plate, then sailed it around the circumference of the Great Hall before causing it to land in front of her, smacking Draco on the head on its way back, knocking him unconscious.

"Thank you, Ms. Granger," McAfee said, putting his wand back in its holster, "I believe you proved my point." He bowed his head to the three of them, bowed his head to Neville and the two girls at the Hufflepuff table then turned and bowed with a flourish to the Ravenclaw table. He then walked back to Ron and leaned down. "What are you still doing here? Go walk around the lake. If you didn't understand today's lesson, if I am willing to do what I did to the Slytherin who appears to be most untouchable in the entire school just to prove a point, imagine what I would do to a mouth-breathing, food-wasting piece of dung whose only reason for being in Gryffindor is that he didn't have what passes for cunning these days to be in Slytherin, doesn't even know that the concept of teamwork exists and is so dense that howlers don't detract from his appetite. In short, Weasley, your cowardice is the least detracting quality you possess. Get up, turn around and go walk around the lake before you begin looking like Draco Malfoy to me," McAfee explained.

Ron stood and left the Great Hall, not even having the courage to look back as his pace increased with every step until he was running out of the castle.

Fitzpatrick, another seventh year Slytherin, looked at McAfee and asked, "Are you sure Malfoy has more intelligence than Weasley? I mean, Weasley listened to you the second time and left."

McAfee laughed as he cancelled the Sonorus.

-oOoOo-

Harry never thought his hand could hurt worse. He had just spent the most mind-numbing two hours listening to the utter rubbish Lockhart was waxing on about as the two of them addressed the Professor's fan mail. Harry was surprised at the number of witches whose names he recognised, including Molly Weasley, who had sent the fraud fan mail. He was walking alone back to Gryffindor Tower to get his book bag before being elf-popped to the Founders' Quarters when he heard a terrifying voice. A voice so cold with hatred and anger that it froze him in place.

"Come to me... Let me kill you... Let me eat you... Swallow you whole will I... " the voice said venomously. He quickly crouched, pulled his wand and looked about. He stood once more. _Tired. I must just be tired,_ he thought.

-oOoOo-

Hermione had awoken in a foul mood, even though she found Luna in her arms. It was still dark, long before their normal six in the morning wakeup time. She had been dreading today for weeks. _At least my cycle doesn't start for another week. _ _Double potions with Slytherin today is worse, however_.

She had one thing to look forward to today. She would open her package from her parents she had received via owl post on Friday. _Should I wait until after lessons today? That might be best._

She had worn last year's birthday gift, red silk pyjamas, to bed last night and, although they were a little small in some places, she was sure her loves had liked the way the pyjamas pulled across her chest if she had them fully buttoned. She had, however, only put the top on and not buttoned it. Similarly, the pyjama bottoms were loosely tied.

She buttoned one button of her top and walked into the bath. She was lost in thought, mentally going through her homework assignments for the week, the warm water pouring onto her face. She pulled her face out of the water and wiped her eyes and began washing herself.

Hermione scrubbed herself three times as part of her birthday ritual, once to leave behind her old self, once to welcome in the new her and once to feel clean. She knew it was silly, that it was just another day, but she had been doing this ritual since she was five years old. _Some things, no matter how silly they seem to me now, are still important to me, _she thought wistfully_._

She finished her shower and dried herself. She sat down at the dressing table, brushed her hair into something resembling a normal head of hair and began getting dressed. When she was finished, she went out to the common room, sat in a corner of the room and began reading the entry for the Potions work they were to do in class today. She didn't know how long she had been reading when she felt someone sit down next to her and cuddle into her side. She looked over to see Luna, freshly showered and dressed. She absently wrapped an arm around the younger girl as she leaned over and kissed her on the head. She then went back to reading, the book in her lap. When she was done with the chapter, she closed the book and looked at the little blonde witch.

"Ready for breakfast, Little Moon?" Hermione asked Luna. Luna just nodded. The two of them stood and stretched. When she didn't see him in the common room, Hermione asked Luna, "Is Harry not up yet or is he still in the bath?"

Luna looked at her quizzically. "Harry left some time ago and told me to wait here with you until you were at a stopping point in your reading," she said.

"Oh, Luna. You should have told me sooner. Let me get my book bag," Hermione said, seeing Luna's book bag was on one of the plush chairs nearby.

The two girls went down to breakfast together. Harry was already sitting at the table when they got there. They sat down with Hermione in the middle as usual, though Luna kissed Harry on the cheek before claiming her normal seat next to Hermione. Once they finished eating, Harry had asked her about some of the homework he was having difficulties with. They were still going over his transfiguration essay when the post owls arrived.

Hermione had been expecting her Daily Prophet. She received it and put it aside to continue helping Harry with his essay. When all of the post owls left the Great Hall, the normal din of the Great Hall returned. It was silenced by the sound of stonework grinding. All eyes looked up to the owl post window in the Great Hall and watched in fascination as the castle moved aside the stones much the same way the entrance to Diagon Alley from The Leaky Cauldron opened.

All of the students and staff were shocked at the loud cawing of an enormously large black eagle which entered the Great Hall. Its wingspan was easily four metres across. The eagle, carrying a large wooden box suspended by a round dowel in its talons, made two orbits of the hall, flared its wings and set the box down on the Gryffindor table in front of Hermione and rested on the dowel, which was at least nine centimetres in diameter.

The eagle landed in front of Hermione, turned its head sideways and looked at Hermione with one huge, golden eye. The large, gold tag on the box had "Hermione Jane Granger" engraved on it, so it was clear for whom the package was intended.

Hermione sat there gaping at the beautiful raptor. Harry took a piece of sausage and offered it to the bird, who took it in one talon and ate it in two bites. This gave Hermione time to find her voice.

"Thank you. You're such a beautiful, smart and majestic eagle," she said to the bird and reached for the tag on the box. The eagle moved its head as if to bite her but instead ran the feathers of its head over her hand. She carefully and tentatively scratched the bird's head for a few moments. It then lifted its head, rubbed the side of its beak on the dowel and then launched itself into the air, making two more orbits of the hall before leaving the way it came. Hermione's and every other student's eyes tracked it the entire time except for Harry, who was looking intensely at Hermione. Once it left the hall, the sound of stones moving could once again be heard, but all eyes were now on the box the eagle had delivered.

"I don't think I have ever seen a bird quite like that before," Hermione said.

Surprisingly, it was Neville who answered her. "That's a Gringotts Eagle, Hermione. They're usually reserved only for the use of their most valued clients or the senior manager of a branch."

While Hermione had been looking at Neville as he spoke, all of the other Gryffindors were staring at the box which had been delivered. It was Dean, of course, with his exclamation which brought Hermione's attention to the source of the box.

"Blimey! Harry! It must have cost you a fortune to have that delivered!" Dean yelled, clearly heard by all in the Great Hall and likely awakening any Slytherin still sleeping in their dungeon.

Hermione looked at a blushing Harry then looked at Dean. "How do you know Harry sent it, Dean?" she asked.

Dean pointed at the side of the box closest to him. "The Potter family crest emblazoned on the side of the box was a huge hint," he explained.

Hermione turned the box so that she could see the side of it. Sure enough, the Potter family crest had been carefully carved into the side of the box. She then turned to Harry, who was blushing furiously. She raised an eyebrow in question.

"You don't have to open it here, Hermione. It's just a simple birthday gift," Harry stammered.

Parvati, hearing this, couldn't help but laugh. Hermione looked at the beauty next to her and raised an eyebrow. "Hermione, whatever Harry may say, if I received a gift delivered by a Gringotts Eagle on my birthday, I would make sure I opened it where only the giver of the gift and I were present at the opening," she said. While there was mirth on her face, her eyes told Hermione she was deadly serious.

"Harry, why don't I drop this off at our quarters and I can open it after class today? Would that be acceptable?"

A clearly-relieved Harry nodded, "I hadn't expected it to be delivered with the morning mail, Hermione."

"Well then. Let's go now so I can drop this off then we can get down to Potions," Hermione said and began gathering her books.

Luna made a rather good suggestion. "Why not have Gallmonger deliver it so you needn't be concerned about being late?" she asked.

Hermione hugged the girl to her. "Luna, never doubt you are a true Ravenclaw," she said and kissed her on the top of the head. Luna called for the elf and Hermione asked him to deliver the box to their quarters. The elf grabbed hold of the dowel, snapped his fingers and popped away nearly silently with the box.

-oOoOo-

Hermione left the astronomy tower and bee-lined for the Great Hall to get Harry and Luna. She was excited and looking forward to opening what was sure to be two gifts which would fill her with joy. One from her parents and one from her husband. She lost focus for a moment as the word _Husband_ brushed over her thoughts, nearly walking into a suit of armour which, at the last moment, stepped out of her way and reached out to correct her course before she walked into the wall. She had wanted some privacy to open her birthday gift from Harry.

She entered the Great Hall and, once more, spotted Luna at the Ravenclaw table sandwiched between Penelope and Roger. She looked about for Harry and spied him just entering the Great Hall at a brisk pace from the main entrance.

She waved over to him and gestured towards the Ravenclaw table. Roger Davies moved over two seats. Hermione thanked him and sat down next to Luna. Harry sat between Hermione and Roger and thanked Roger for making room. They ate dinner in relative peace then excused themselves so that Hermione could open her gifts.

Gallmonger popped them up to the Founders' quarters and set the box on the floor in front of Harry.

Harry picked the box up from the floor, placed it on a table and stood back to let Hermione open it. Before she did, however, she had to chastise him. "Harry, you clearly spent way too much money on a gift for me. From talking with others today, I found out just the delivery cost of using a Gringotts Eagle is one thousand galleons or more," she said, looking cross.

Harry looked shocked. "Really? They didn't charge me for the delivery at all. Ironclaw told me it was a free service for a major account holder making a purchase of bank assets, whatever that's supposed to mean," Harry explained, hoping he quenched her ire at him.

"Well, alright. I was just worried you had gone overboard with your gift...Wait! Purchasing Bank assets?," she exclaimed. Harry put a finger to her lips and then took her by the shoulders and gently turned her back around to the box to open it.

"I hope you like it, Hermione," Harry said with a tenuous smile. He then put an arm around Luna and pulled her tightly to himself.

Hermione had a little smile on her face as she undid the catches on the box. _It seems like a rather elaborate container for a gift. Just what is it he got me? _She wondered.

After undoing the catches and opening the top and side, which were both hinged, she removed several wads of paper packing material, all of which seemed to have cushioning charms added to them, to reveal an inner, ornate box which she very carefully removed.

The inner box was lacquered in deepest black, polished to a high sheen one could use as a mirror and had an inlayed gold Gringotts logo within the lacquer. _Like Daddy's boots for his Reservist weekends,_ she mused. It was tied shut with a red, silk ribbon. _ The same colour as my pyjamas. Just how much did he spend on this gift?_ She untied the ribbon and opened the box.

Harry was holding his breath. Hermione had opened the gift but was staring open-mouthed at it and hadn't said a word for over a minute._ She hates it. I knew I should have gotten her something other than books this year. Damn. She probably wanted a dress or something girly. I'm rubbish at this gift stuff. Maybe she'll like the earrings,_ he thought.

Hermione, however, was having a very different internal conversation. _HOLY CRAP! REALLY? REALLY? It can't be! Oh! Merlin! Oh! My! Wow! Wow! WOW! _Hermione was thinking repeatedly, unsure if she was really awake or just dreaming this was happening. Within the black velvet-lined, black-lacquered box was, in nearly mint condition, a first edition three-volume work of Jane Austen, "Sense and Sensibility" as well as an envelope and a smaller white slipcase.

"Um, Hermione? I can get you something different if you don't like it. I'm sorry," Harry said dejectedly.

"Harry! How? Where did you...Harry James Potter! This is an amazing gift! I can't accept it though. It is way too much!" Hermione exclaimed. _I can't keep this! Oh Merlin! It must have cost a fortune!_

"You have to keep it, Hermione," Harry said, "if you like it, that is. I picked it out for you and..."

"I LOVE it! Harry!" Hermione exclaimed.

Luna was smiling at Hermione's antics.

"Then that settles it. You have to keep it," Harry explained.

Hermione stared at the gift then looked over at the young man. She turned and pulled him into a hug. Harry was startled more when, instead of giving him a quick kiss, Hermione gave him a lingering kiss on the lips._ Boy! She must REALLY like it!_

She looked into Harry's eyes, "Thank you, Harry. I don't think you know how much this means to me!"

"Happy Birthday, Hermione. I am really glad you like it. There's also a letter describing the set in the box," Harry said, a silly, stunned smile on his face.

Hermione removed the ornate, gilded envelope in the box and removed the neatly quilled letter from within. It read:

_**The provenance of this three-volume, first-edition set of the novel came from the library of Sir John Shelley, sixth Baronet of Maresfield Park, Sussex, with his armorial bookplates and the signature of ownership penned by his wife, Frances, Lady Shelley (nee Winckley) on the upper boards and came to be available for sale and subsequently purchased on speculation by Gringotts upon the death of Sir Shelley. Gringotts has had it in the bank's possession for over a century and it is known to be one of only five remaining copies out of the original printing of seven hundred and fifty copies. It has been treated with resiliency spells and anti-tearing spells, although the volumes are still uncut. Any acids within the original materials of the book were neutralized. The pages of the volumes have been spelled to remain clean should the owner choose to cut the pages and read the volumes in their original form. All spellwork was done with the intent of retaining or increasing the value of the volumes.**_

_**Also enclosed is a copy of this work in its original text but in a more consumable format suitable for reading with anti-tear and self-cleaning spellwork similar to the original volumes.**_

_**Publisher: London: for the author, by C. Roworth, and published by T. Egerton, 1811**_

Harry caught the young witch as she fainted. _I guess she really liked it. I wonder how much Beltchirp did spend on it, not that it really matters._

Harry carefully laid her on the floor and asked Luna to hold her head. A few moments later, Hermione blinked and slowly sat up.

"Are you feeling better, Hermione?" Luna asked, gently stroking Hermione's forehead with her fingertips.

"I think so. Harry, that is too expensive a gift!" Hermione complained as Harry held out a hand to help her stand and steady her. He then held out his hand to help Luna stand as well.

Harry removed two small deep blue velvet boxes from his robes. "I have something for both of you. I didn't want Luna to feel left out and I had planned on giving these to each of you on your birthdays, but since we missed Luna's birthday this year, I figured now was a perfect time to give them to both of you," he said, stealing a peak at the interior of one of the boxes so he could present them to the correct girl.

He opened the boxes and presented them to the open-mouthed girls. He was explaining that the Goblins had placed self-piercing charms, ever-clean charms, charmed so only the wearer could remove them and some protective charms, but the girls were looking at the earrings and trying desperately to hold in their squeals.

The earrings Harry held out for Hermione had central sapphires surrounded by six quarter-carat diamonds. Luna's earrings were nearly identical except for the central amethyst.

Harry was looking down at his shoes as he explained the Goblin modifications and did not notice how the girls' eyes were alight as they stood mesmerised by the twinkling of the light from the earrings.

Luna took Hermione's earrings and held them up to her ears. The earrings pierced Hermione's ears and settled into place, instantly healing her ears with holes twice the size of the wire loops. Hermione took Luna's earrings and did the same for Luna. Both girls then took one of Harry's hands and kissed him on the cheek. He received a gushing duet of "Thank you, Harry," from the two stunned girls. He looked up to see the looks of pure adoration on their faces and blushed.

"I'm glad you like them," he said, hoping they liked their Christmas presents with equal enthusiasm.

The girls dragged Harry into the bedroom and cuddled into him on either side to let him know they loved him.

-oOoOo-

September ended and October began with an unusually high number of students and faculty coming down with a cold or flu. Madam Pomfrey had caught Professor Snape in a particularly congenial mood when she had asked the Potions Master for Pepper-Up potions and so had plenty on hand to give out to the sickly students and flu-suffering faculty.

It was a week before Halloween and Harry was feeling glum. Although it was raining so heavily one could not see a their hand in front of their face whilst walking, Oliver insisted the Quidditch team practice. On top of Oliver's exuberance for practising incomprehensible game plans during what could only be described as monsoon-like downpours, there was the fact the school was preparing to celebrate a day he associated only with pain, loss and suffering. The eleventh anniversary of his parents' death.

He was walking somewhat aimlessly, squelching water and dripping mud. As he rounded a corner, Harry ran across someone just as preoccupied in misery as himself.

"Greetings, Sir Nicholas," Harry said.

The Gryffindor ghost turned from the window he had been looking out of while muttering under his breath about failing to meet requirements and looked at Harry. The ghost bowed deeply, "Lord Potter," he said, then came upright again, as ghosts did not appear to stand.

The ghost seemed to look closely at Harry for a moment. "You look troubled, My young Lord," Sir Nicholas said.

"As do you," Harry replied, dripping bits of mud and forming a pool of water where he stood.

Sir Nicholas was about to speak when a high-pitched mewling came from the vicinity of Harry's feet.

They looked down to see Mrs. Norris was circling around Harry's legs and looking up at him with amber eyes which seemed alight with an intelligence greater than a simple cat should have.

"You should be going, Young Lord. Master Filch is in an evil mood tonight. I know not why, but it is rumoured there was an accident in Potions this afternoon and the room looked as if you had killed another troll," Sir Nicholas said.

Argus Filch suddenly rounded the corner from the direction Harry had come. For whatever reason, Master Filch was allergic to one or more ingredients of Pepper-Up potion so the cold he had simply exacerbated his normally-foul mood. He saw Mrs. Norris circling around Harry's legs purring and saw the puddle of water at the end of the trail of water and mud he had been following.

As he began to yell, Filch's nose purpled, the veins in his ample forehead pulsed outwards and his countenance became more mottled. "You are befouling the very soul of this great castle, treading in muck and mire, soiling these magnificent halls with your filth! Follow me, Potter!" the man screamed from a hair's breadth away.

Harry slipped back to visions of what happened when he didn't follow the instructions screamed at him from Uncle Vernon and followed behind the caretaker, the chill of the water soaking him through to the skin now exacerbated by his fright for the man leading him deeper into the bowels of the castle.

They came to Filch's office where the man was muttering to himself under his breath about various potion ingredients when the sound of a huge explosion came from nearly directly overhead.

Filch was yelling after Peeves, the castle's poltergeist, and ran from the office, his cat following behind him at a more sedate pace.

Harry had thought he should stay put so as not to get into further trouble and sat down in a hard-backed wooden chair. He noticed what appeared to be an application to an owl-post-order course on magic. He was reading through it when he heard the sounds of shuffling feet. He quickly folded the material back up and stuffed it haphazardly back into the envelope and tossed it on the desk.

Filch came back in, muttering about having enough to get Peeves properly exorcised from the castle this time when his eyes took in Harry and his desk. Harry turned around and realised the envelope which had been in the centre of the desk was now teetering on the far edge.

Filch grabbed Harry's Quidditch robes, wringing a litre of water out onto the floor. "Did you read that, boy? Not mine, of course. A friend's! That's right! A friend's!"

Harry was mumbling that he hadn't read it, but it was unheard by Filch who continued on.

"If I thought you were reading my personal... Never you mind. Get out and not a word of it... no. Go! I have to deal with Peeves with the Headmaster. Just go!" Filch said and pulled the boy out of his office and let him go, slamming the door behind him.

Still frightened by the memory of Uncle Vernon screaming at him, Harry ran down the corridor and up the stairs. He vaguely heard Sir Nicholas say he had had Peeves destroy something directly over the caretaker's office, but his headlong rush to get away from the memory of his uncle didn't allow for him the mental fortitude to comprehend what the ghost was saying, much less coherently reply to the comments. Sir Nicholas, however, followed along next to Harry, as he saw Harry seemed somewhat distraught. Finally the ghost yelled at Harry to stop.

Harry turned and cowered into a corner, "I'm sorry, Uncle Vernon. Don't," he cried, holding his hands in front of him to deflect the blows that would never again come at him.

"My dear boy, even if I could, I would never strike a blow against any innocent child, much less someone who has committed so many selfless acts," Sir Nicholas said quietly, in a reassuring voice.

Harry was glassy-eyed for a moment, then focused on Sir Nicholas.

"The only reason I yelled for you to stop, My Lord, was that you were headed for an opened stair head," the ghost said.

Harry looked around and saw the landing had an opening in the railing, but no staircase upon which to tread. He would most certainly have fallen to his death had Sir Nicholas not stopped him.

Just then, Hermione and Luna ran around the corner and saw Harry laying upon the floor, huddled in the corner with Sir Nicholas floating over him.

"HARRY!" the two girls yelled.

Harry looked through Sir Nicholas at the two girls and a warmth spread through him, allowing him to realise just how cold he was. He looked over his shoulder once more, just as a stairway swung into position. Hermione and Luna walked around Sir Nicholas, as they both knew it was considered incredibly rude to step through a ghost in your path, and helped Harry to stand.

"Sir Nicholas," a now-shivering and thoroughly embarrassed Harry said, "I owe you. Both for getting me out of Master Filch's office as well as saving my life. If there is anything I can do to repay your kindness, you have but to ask."

Sir Nicholas looked at the ghostly letter still clutched in his hand then looked at Harry. "There is one thing you could do, if you wouldn't mind," the ghost said hopefully.

Harry nodded, "Anything if it is within my power, Sir Nicholas."

"Next Saturday I am celebrating the five hundredth anniversary of my death day and am having a party in one of the larger dungeons. I am wondering if I could invite you, Lady Lovegood, Lord Longbottom and, of course, Ms. Granger?" the ghost asked.

Harry nodded, but Luna answered him formally, "It would be our sincerest pleasures to attend so auspicious an event, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington. What time would you like us to appear and I can only presume it will be a formal occasion?" she asked.

"I am honoured, Lady Lovegood. The event begins at seven in the evening, dress is formal. I will not ask you to stay more than an hour, as I know you will also want to attend the festivities in the Great Hall," the ghost said.

"That is most kind of you, Sir. May we be presumptuous and refer to you as Sir Nicholas?" Luna asked.

The ghost took his hat off with a flourish and bowed down to the three students, "I would be most honoured to have you refer to me so cordially, Lady Lovegood."

"Then I think you should refer to us as Lord Harry, Lord Neville and Lady Luna," Luna said.

The ghost once more bowed, flourishing his hat then departed through the floor.

Hermione was, of course, the one to look for opportunities everywhere. "A deathday party. I don't imagine there are many living witches or wizards who can claim being invited to one. I imagine it will be delightfully educational," she said, then her expression broke and she could not help but laugh. Her laughter was infectious and brought Harry back to normal, although he was shivering due to the cold.

Luna called Gallmonger and the three were soon in front of a roaring fire, drinking hot cocoa, Harry having been allowed to change in the bath and wash the mud off himself along with a warming-charm imbued big fluffy robe and slippers to help keep him cosy. He was pleasantly surprised when the girls didn't tease him about the robe or slippers and only cuddled into him on the couch, where all three soon fell asleep.

Gallmonger popped in shortly thereafter, cast a warming charm on the sheets of the bed and floated the three exhausted children above the bed before lowering them onto the mattress and tucking in the covers over them.

-oOoOo-

-o-AN-o-  
>As to the scene with McAfee and Malfoy, I just watched an American cult classic film. I am certain many of you will place and understand the reference. For those of you who asked in private messages, these are the types of scenes my editors cut out of my chapters. This scene was taken from between Luna and Parvati laughing and Harry's hand cramping from addressing Lockhart's fan mail. I added it back in at the recommendation of TM<br>-o-AN-o-

-o-AN-o-  
>Some did not understand the reasons the breakfast conversation between the children seemed so mature. Explanation below.<br>Most of the actual dialogue is either Penelope Clearwater, a 6th year, or Roger Davies, a 6th year. I was basing their use of language on various 18th and 19th century accounts of conversations held between the elder children of formally educated merchant families, with some linguistic modernization. I tried to keep Hermione's muggleborn roots in her language.  
>Luna is from a founding family who was formally educated and was treated as if she was an adult, from an educational point of view, after her mother was killed.<br>Harry has had it drilled into his head by Sirius for a month how important it is to be formal and precise with people. Sirius feels it is his fault Harry is married and made certain, through several hours of lecture each day during holiday, Harry would make no further errors. While Hermione and Luna attended some of these lectures, Harry has it stuck in his head through significant immersion that he needs to start off formal and lower the conversation to casual only once expectations have been set.  
>-o-AN-o-<p> 


	18. Lunch, Potions and Familiars

-o-AN-o-  
>Once more, special thanks to texan-muggle for final proofreading. You are the best, TM!<br>-o-AN-o-  
>An anonymous reviewer, afan, indicated there were plot holes and grammatical errors in Chapters 13 and 14. I would appreciate anyone who could either PM me or leave a detailed review with specifically the nature of the issues. I did find some spelling errors and some missingextra word issues, but found no grammatical issues or plot holes. Your assistance would be appreciated.  
>-o-AN-o-<br>POLL Results: The results of the poll indicated most readers felt the content of the story should remain rated M for maturity, mostly due to the same-gender orientation and polyamorous nature of some of the relationships. While I do not agree with this perspective, I will honour it and this story shall remain rated M. I appreciate all of the feedback as well as the insight provided to me in PMs concerning the reasons for recommending it remain rated in this fashion.  
>-o-AN-o-<br>I hope the story continues to captivate you or, at least, hold your interest such that you are enjoying it. If you are going to leave an anonymous review with honest criticism, if you could do me the favour of providing specific examples of the issues you uncover, or tell me how you would have written it in a different fashion, I will appreciate the effort. If you want to send me a PM, you will need to be registered on the site, but that takes only a few moments.  
>-o-AN-o-<br>-oOoOo-

The trio was eating lunch at the Ravenclaw table, as was usual for them. Harry was eating, half-listening to the girls' conversation. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Padma stealing glances at Hermione, Luna and him.

Padma, he noted, seemed to be constantly surrounded by all of the second-year girls in Ravenclaw. He knew she was the leader of the clique because, while she wasn't always at the front of the group and wasn't always the first to finish eating, when she finished her meal and stood to leave, all of the other second-year girls would quickly finish their meals and gather their things together. There was also something about her magic that sang to him, much the way Hermione's magic and Luna's magic formed a chorus with his whenever he was with one or both of them, Padma's magic seemed to resonate in the same way.

He decided to experiment with this a bit today and he leaned into Hermione, kissed her on the cheek, which caused her to stop talking for a moment as he softly whispered to her, "I just want to let you know, I am going to play with my magic for a few moments. If you notice anything, let me know, Love," and then kissed her on her ear, causing her to blush slightly and smile at him shyly. He smiled and went back to eating. It took a few moments, but Hermione resumed her conversation.

Harry was certain Padma had noticed his interaction with Hermione, but was fairly certain no one but Hermione heard what he had said.

He continued eating for a few minutes, closing his eyes as if to savour some flavour in the food, but was instead reaching out to Padma's magic with his own. He was thinking about her neck, where it joined her right shoulder. How soft and smooth it must be. How sensitive it must be. How she seemed to smell of jasmine and parchment with just a hint of ink. Thinking that must be how her skin would taste if he were to kiss it. He tilted his head down as if to take another bite, still focused on his image of Padma's neck. He saw her magic flare up next to his lake. It looked to be half the width of Hermione's. _I have to be careful to not overdo this,_ he thought, as he just barely opened the valve on the spigot to his magic in his mindscape.

Padma was sitting and watching her secret goddess and her two more-than-friends. Although she didn't know what their relationship was, watching Harry kiss Hermione then whisper to her and finally kiss her in a way that had made her blush led Padma to believe Harry wanted to be Hermione's boyfriend or had just asked her to be his boyfriend. Padma shivered just watching the intimacy of the kiss. This interaction seemed out of place considering how proprietary Hermione was around Luna, and not in a big sister / little sister way.

She was watching them and yet trying to not be caught at it when she felt someone breathe warm air on her neck, causing her to jump up and look around.

When she stood, Harry turned the spigot off again. _Well, that was interesting,_ he thought.

She sat back down, having looked around and seen no one there. She resumed eating her meal and joined in the conversation with her entourage. _I wish she was my friend. I wish they were my friends. I thought Penelope liked me. I wish Penelope would introduce us,_ she thought, nearly crying in self-pity and a sense of loss.

Harry waited until she resumed eating. He regained his imagery of her and this time, instead of just opening the spigot a crack, he slowly opened it until it was at one-quarter.

Padma once more felt the warm breath on her neck. She was about to rise and turn when the breath turned into a hot, languishing kiss. It felt as if another hand was gently wrapping around her stomach, drawing her into the kiss. She closed her eyes. The kiss moved up her neck, behind her ear and she could feel the warm, wet tongue gently lick up the outside of her ear. She felt warm honey drip onto her neck and run down her breast and stomach as well as down her shoulder and her back. She closed her eyes and tried to stifle the shudder that was trying to shake her body. Part of her mind was screaming that she should stand and slap whomever was doing this to her. Most of her mind, however, was quietly accepting this attention with intense anticipation.

Harry now slowly opened the spigot further, reaching the halfway mark.

The slow trickle of delicious, sweet honey running onto her neck and down her body became a warm, caressing, languishing river she could now taste and smell. A light sheen of perspiration covered her upper lip and eyelids. The arm around her stomach drew back a bit and ran over the top of her left thigh, followed by another hand running over the top of her right thigh. The hands reached her knees and slid down to the inside of her knees. The part of her mind being drowned out by the honey was screaming the impossibility of this sensation since her knees were firmly pressed together. The remainder of her consciousness was calmly accepting this sensation, causing her to physically relax a bit and spread her knees apart. The honey began streaming upwards as well, over and in her ear, over the top of her scalp and streaming down her other shoulder and breast, awakening in her feelings she only experienced when she was alone in her bed at night thinking about the girl across from her. The hands at her knees slowly, tentatively began sliding towards her centre. Her secret place. A tingling began to build within her. That tingling. She was right on the edge. She dropped her fork.

Satisfied with his experiment, Harry slowly turned the spigot off again.

Just before they touched her THERE, the hands slid back to her knees then left her completely. _NO!_ she screamed in her mind, emitting an audible moan of loss across the table. The warm, sensual honey evaporated, leaving behind the scent of her perfume with a lingering scent of oak, straw, damp clothing and tilled soil._ Where have I smelled that scent before?_ she wondered.

She opened her eyes and noticed several of her entourage as well as Roger Davies, Harry, Hermione, Luna and Penelope were looking at her. She noted that while Roger and Penelope looked at her in surprise, Luna had a somewhat dreamy smile, Hermione had a small smile and a pink hue to her cheeks and Harry was smiling at her. Feeling self-conscious, she hurried through the remainder of her breakfast and left as quickly as possible.

Hermione leaned over to Luna, kissed her on the cheek and whispered, "Dinner in our quarters tonight." Luna turned and 'accidentally' kissed Hermione then blushed as she pulled back, nodding.

Hermione raised an eyebrow at her, then turned to Harry and told him the same. She wanted some quiet privacy to discuss Harry's latest discovery.

-oOoOo-

"Mr. Longbottom?" Severus asked when Neville raised his hand.

"Essence of wormwood," Neville said confidently.

"Excellent, Mr. Longbottom, please take five points for Gryffindor," Severus said, looking about the classroom. "Who can tell me the reasons essence of wormwood stabilises the reaction?" he asked. Several students raised their hands. "Miss Greengrass?" he asked.

Daphne was surprised she would be called over Draco, but answered the question, "While the exact nature of the reaction has not yet been proven, it is believed the essence of wormwood bonds to the oils excreted by the wisteria pods, changing the structure of the volatiles to a crystalline form and allowing the essence of oleander to more slowly react with the wisteria. This also apparently has the effect of melding the scents of the three components into a more appealing scent and reduces the acidic after-taste of the potion."

Severus smiled. Here was another girl who somewhat reminded Severus of Lily Evans, but with a large dose of Slytherin traits. "Excellent, Miss Greengrass. Please take ten points for Slytherin for providing such a complete answer," he said.

Once more he looked around the classroom. "Can anyone tell me the result of dropping," he looked hard at Draco with a piercing gaze, "or throwing a newt eye into the brewing process any time from step seven until step twenty-three?" he asked.

Four students raised their hands, all of whom had a somewhat fearful look on their face: Harry, Hermione, Neville and Daphne. Draco simply swallowed and looked extremely nervous.

"Miss Granger?" Severus asked.

"Sir, the reaction would rapidly and catastrophically destabilise, beginning from the moment the newt eye struck the surface of the potion. It would form an almost stone-like crystalline structure on the surface which would grow downwards just behind the descent of the eye. Once the eye settled against the bottom of the iron cauldron, which would cause the crystalline lattice to change colour from a deep blue to a bright orange due to iron oxide being released into the lattice, the resulting discharge of magic would complete the destabilisation, causing the contents of the cauldron to detonate. In a room this size, with cauldrons such as we are using, it would likely kill everyone in the room and possibly be strong enough to overcome the containment wards and damage the actual structure of the castle, herself, Sir," Hermione explained. She then spoke again, "Sir, once the newt eye has begun the crystallization process, the only known method of reversing or stabilising the reaction is to pour one or more vials of mercury, which sinks to the bottom of the cauldron, forming a pool of mercury. The newt eye's magical discharge is absorbed by the mercury, but this must be done before the eye hits the bottom of the cauldron. This is one of the reasons this potion is normally brewed in small pewter or gold cauldrons instead of large iron cauldrons, Sir," she finished.

Severus smiled for a moment, then once more schooled his features. "Very, very good, Miss Granger. Please take fifteen points for Gryffindor," he said then noted the pleased-but-embarrassed smile Hermione had on her face. He looked around and noticed Draco's complexion had noticeably paled. _Please, Goddess, tell me he hadn't been stupid enough to consider sabotaging someone's potion again,_ Severus prayed silently. He decided to be less subtle with Draco today. "Class, please note you will find all of the ingredients you will need in order to brew this potion. Note that you are to use very low-powered heating spells on your cauldrons today as you will be making a small batch of potion. Should you lose control of the reaction within your cauldron, scream, shout or otherwise gain my attention so I may deal with whatever mistake is occurring. Begin your work," he said and began walking through the Slytherin side of the classroom. He stopped in front of Goyle and Malfoy. "Mr. Goyle, please continue preparing your potion ingredients. Take as much time as you need and please ask Miss Greengrass before you add them to ensure you prepared them correctly. Mr. Malfoy, a moment of your time in the hallway," Severus said.

Draco walked away from his cauldron under the weight of all eyes within the classroom. He opened the door and Severus followed him out. He turned to look at his professor and Head of House.

"Mr. Malfoy, please turn out your pockets," Severus said.

"What?" Draco asked with incredulity.

"Mr. Malfoy. Your cunning and intellect have both recently been proven to be below the level your father expects of you. You have already proven to have a certain level of animosity towards Mr. Potter, Miss Granger and Mr. Longbottom. You are already serving a detention for attempted academic sabotage. You seem unaware of the consequences of these actions," Severus said then noted Draco was about to retort. "I am not finished yet, Mr. Malfoy and no words are necessary for your required response. While I would, in many ways, be overjoyed if you learned first-hand the outcome of attempted murder on your fellow students, I would much rather not have to explain to the Hogwarts Board of Governors the reason I impregnated your robes with mercury before tossing you into the cauldron to neutralise the potion reaction. Now! Turn out your pockets!" Severus shouted, conjuring a silver tray to float in front of Draco for him to place his items on.

Draco was thoroughly cowed now. Never before had Severus shouted at him. Never. Draco began removing items from his pockets, including a folded piece of parchment. Severus poked his wand at the piece of parchment, causing it to unfold, revealing half a dozen newt eyes.

Severus looked up coldly at Draco, who had a wide-eyed gape of fear on his face. It was a few moments before Severus managed to control his rage and contain his anger-driven reaction to transfigure Draco into an owl treat. "Mr. Malfoy, to attempt to describe how disappointed I am in you would require me to use language I usually would not use to describe the most foolish dunderhead in this school," Severus said, then thought for a moment and said, "Mr. Malfoy, remove your robes."

Draco looked completely panicked. "Excuse me?" he asked.

"Mr Malfoy, I believe Mr. McAfee taught you previously how foolish it is to underestimate your betters. I believe he also made it clear to all present in the Great Hall your ability to comprehend spoken English. At the moment, my instructions require no verbal responses. They require you to do as I say when I say it. If you prefer, instead of taking care of this issue appropriately as an internal matter between you and your professor, I shall instead remove you from class today, send you to Master Filch's office for detention and contact your father to come remove you from school for a week's suspension. Now. You may remove your robes or you may await your father's arrival in Master Filch's care," Severus explained.

Draco slowly removed his robes, his embarrassment evident on his face. He held them in his arms in front of him.

"Toss them on the floor," Severus said. Draco was about to complain however Severus spoke again. "On the floor immediately!" he ordered.

Draco threw his robes to the floor as if they were poisonous. The moment they hit the floor, Severus cast an Incendio at the robes, immediately incinerating the robes to Draco's horror.

"Were you wearing your shoes when you placed the newt eyes into your robes?" Severus asked mildly.

"You burned my..." Draco began to complain but was cut off by Severus' acidic questioning.

"Were you or were you not wearing your shoes when you placed the newt eyes in your robe?" Severus asked.

"I was wearing my shoes," Draco answered in embarrassment.

"Remove your shoes," Severus said.

Draco was about to protest, then remembered the alternative. He removed his shoes and set them down on the stone floor and stepped away from them.

Severus incinerated the shoes. He then looked at Draco's green acromantula silk boxers and his green and silver socks. "Did the pockets in your robes have any holes?" he asked.

"No sir," Draco answered meekly.

"You're certain there were no newt eye-sized holes in your robe pockets?" Severus asked.

"I don't know, sir," Draco said, looking down at the floor, then looked up at Severus in horror.

"Mr. Malfoy, uncertainty is unbecoming a Slytherin. Either you are certain there were no holes, or we have to presume there were holes. You life is at stake here as a newt eye slipping from your clothing into your cauldron will kill you, but more importantly, it would kill or harm other students, a Ministry worker, your professor and Head of House as well as bring shame upon House Malfoy. Please choose your answer carefully," Severus said.

Draco began perspiring in fear and embarrassment, but decided in the end that a few moments of embarrassment were worth the opportunity to continue living. He removed his boxers and socks and tossed them away from him, watching in horror as a newt eye fell from the flung boxers.

Severus froze the newt eye in mid air then incinerated the boxers and socks.

It was in that moment that Fate decided to turn a bad situation for Draco into a worse one. Draco and Severus heard Professor Sprout's first-year herbology class headed down the corridor.

Severus looked at a now-panicking Draco. "Be quiet and do exactly as I say if you wish to live through the next five minutes. Crouch down on the floor and do not move until I pick you up. Once I pick you up, act appropriately as if you are my familiar. Doing anything inappropriate while you are in my hands will get you fed to the thestrals," Severus explained. He began waving his wand in a complex manner towards Draco. Finally he incanted, "Formo Compellere Animagus!"

The bright blue spell struck Draco and he changed to his animagus form, a silver-blue Yorkshire terrier puppy of approximately twelve weeks old. Severus smiled for a moment then picked the puppy up and turned around to see Professor Sprout and her class come around the corner.

Professor Sprout stopped as the puppy in Severus' hand came into view. "Hello, Professor Snape. Did you get a new pet?" Pomona asked.

Severus looked at the first-year Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw girls, as well as a few of the boys, looking at the puppy with adoration and heard a few comments about how cute it was. "I did, Professor Sprout. One of the boys in Slytherin had presumed to use it for potions ingredients so I removed it from the boy's possession and plan to keep it as my pet," Severus said, then looked at all of the children who were cooing at the puppy and a thought of pure evil struck him which he knew he had to act upon. "Should any of your students wish to see him after class, I shall bring him to the Great Hall at lunch today," Severus said, working very hard to keep the smile off his face and the now-struggling puppy in his hand. "I should get back to monitoring my class. I will see you at lunch, Professor Sprout," Severus said.

"I will see you then, Professor Snape," Pomona said, _and I will find out which one of the miscreants had dared consider using such an adorable creature as potion ingredients,_ Pomona thought. She began walking again, her class following her with the occasional student looking back at the puppy and smiling.

Severus removed a handkerchief from his pocket and set it on the ground. He then removed two knuts from his pocket and placed these on the ground. He transfigured the handkerchief into Slytherin robes and the knuts into shoes. He then set Draco on the floor again and cast Finite Incantatem on him. Suddenly a naked and sputtering boy was standing in place of the puppy.

"A dog? My form is a dog?" Draco shouted, then realised two things: Severus was staring at him with a raised eyebrow and a small smile and Draco was naked. Draco turned bright pink and tossed the robe on which Severus had transfigured for him. He then slipped on the shoes and straightened his hair. He removed his wand and other items from the tray and placed them back in the robe's pockets.

"When Potions has completed, you will remain in the classroom so that I may take you to the Great Hall to keep my promise to Professor Sprout and her students," Severus explained calmly.

Draco looked at Severus in horror, "But... but..." he stopped and hung his head, then nodded.

Severus set the parchment filled with newt eyes upon the stone floor and moved the still hovering one into the parchment. He cast an incendio on the parchment, destroying the incriminating materials. Severus motioned for a thoroughly-chastised Draco to re-enter the classroom.

-oOoOo-

Upon re-entering the class, Severus was pleased to note everyone was actually working on completing the potion. Draco walked to the cauldron he shared with Gregory Goyle and was surprised at how far along Gregory was in the process. Gregory had stopped working when Draco walked up next to him. Gregory nearly fainted at Draco's words.

"Excellent work, Gregory. Was Greengrass helping you?" Draco asked in honest curiosity.

"Yes. She is very good at Potions," Gregory answered, knowing he wouldn't have been close to completion without the nice girl's help.

Draco turned to Daphne and nearly gave her a heart attack with his comment. "Thank you, Daphne," Draco whispered, "for helping Gregory and me with Potions today." She nodded at him. He then turned back and worked quietly with Gregory to finish their potion before the end of class. Thanks to Daphne helping Gregory and Draco not constantly daydreaming and actually working on the potion, they successfully completed the brewing. Draco came to the realisation that he actually enjoyed brewing potions and felt regretful he had not spent more attention on the subject last year.

Gregory was pleased that, for the first time in his study of potions, he did not receive a grade of Poor for the day and, for the first time, received an Exceeds Expectations. Once he had bottled, labelled and turned in his potions work to Professor Snape, he turned around and thanked Daphne for all of her help. Draco, too, turned and thanked Daphne again, almost causing the girl to drop her bottled and labelled potion.

He then helped Gregory clean up, something he had made Gregory do by himself in the past as he felt it was beneath him. Somehow, being stripped naked in a hallway and then having his pride saved only by the quick thinking of Professor Snape, who was, after all, trying to save his life from his own stupidity, gave him a new perspective, at least in the short term, on the values he had placed on his positioning efforts with Slytherin and the school as a whole.

Once class was dismissed, he approached Severus.

Severus looked up from his ledger and saw Draco. "You should go to your room, change clothes and I will meet you in the hall between the dungeons and the Great Hall," Severus said, then looked back down at his ledger to continue noting, with pleasure, all of the teams had completed their potions, with the exception of Weasley and Finnigan. _Perhaps a brief discussion with Minerva would be in order_, he thought.

"Professor Snape?" Draco asked.

Severus looked up sharply. "For what reason are you still here, Mr. Malfoy? You have your instructions," he said coldly.

Draco squared his shoulders. "I wanted to thank you, Sir, for correcting my behaviour today and for being protective of me. Both my life and my pride," Draco said contritely.

Severus briefly looked into Draco's eyes and, using Legilimency, scanned his thoughts. _The boy is sincerely apologetic. And he genuinely thanked his house mates for their help. How excellent,_ he thought. "You are welcome, Mr. Malfoy. Please go change and return to me my handkerchief and knuts," Severus said and watched Draco leave. _I hope his attitude change lasts longer than the day,_ Severus thought.

-oOoOo-

Severus entered the Great Hall with a puppy under one arm and a mission on his mind. He had sworn Draco to secrecy concerning anything spoken between staff members or to students while he carried Draco around during lunch. As he sat at the staff table, he noted Pomona was whispering to Sinestra and looked over at Severus. Severus called for a house elf and asked it to bring him a platter of meats and cheeses for the puppy. As Severus ate his meal, he fed the puppy on his lap from the platter. When he finished his lunch, he stood and walked to the gap between the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables where the first years were sitting.

He conjured a chair between the two tables and invited the first years to pet the puppy, after he cautioned them to be gentle and respectful. One first year Hufflepuff girl found the puppy liked its back scratched in a particular spot as the puppy's leg would twitch the entire time she gently scratched it. Nearly everyone in the Great Hall, from the other professors to the first year Gryffindors and Slytherins were shocked at Severus' cordial demeanour amongst the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw first years, allowing several Ravenclaws to answer questions about Yorkshire terriers, including that there were no known potions which used any part of them for ingredients.

When he noticed Minerva had nearly finished her meal, he let the students surrounding him know that he had to take his leave but might bring the puppy back at some later time for additional attention from the first years. One third year Hufflepuff asked if they could all get an opportunity to give the little terrier some attention. Severus acknowledged there may be possibilities for this and thanked the students for the care they took with his puppy. He then walked to the staff table where there was a mixture of responses to his behaviour. Most of the professors were surprised. Pomona looked ready to hug him, Filius looked at him with complete and utter shock, Sinestra had a small smile on her face, Dumbledore was clearly extremely pleased and Minerva seemed upset.

Pomona approached him but did not, as he had feared, hug him. "Professor Snape, thank you for letting my first years give your puppy some attention. Once we came upon the two of you in the hall prior to lunch, it was difficult to bring the class back on-topic as they all seemed to want to speak of nothing other than you and your dog," she said with a smile.

"I am glad to have had the opportunity to give some of your students an opportunity to spend some time with something other than two-legged animals. You may want to spend some time with Miss Marshall. I do not know what her home life is like, but she is acting oddly for a Hufflepuff and I am concerned," Severus said, surprising the Hufflepuff Head of House.

"I shall do as you advise, Professor. Thank you," Pomona said earnestly.

Severus then turned to Minerva. "Professor McGonagall? Do you have a few moments before we need to be in class again? There is something I need to discuss with you," Severus said calmly.

"Let us retire to the staff lounge, Professor Snape," Minerva said, standing and placing her napkin on her plate. She held the door open for Snape. She did not speak until the two of them entered the staff lounge. She then turned and looked at the puppy in Snape's hand then into Severus' eyes. "What did you wish to discuss, Severus?" she asked, then looked at the puppy once more before looking back at Severus.

"Before it is too late and I am forced to hold them back a year for the most ridiculous of reasons, I am having an issue with two of the second-year lions in Potions. I am hoping you can provide some assistance. I need you to talk to them and, if necessary, their parents and express to them how important potions is to their future. If they cannot arrive to class on time and they cannot concentrate on the work at hand, I will have to place them back in first year potions. Both of them barely scraped by with a Poor last year and are likely to receive Trolls this year," Severus explained.

"And who are these two?" Minerva asked, suspecting Severus was being biased again.

"Ronald Weasley and Seamus Finnigan. I believe Finnigan would pass with an Exceeds if he wasn't being dragged down by Weasley. Should you speak to Weasley's parents, however, please inform his mother that, should she send him another howler and embarrass him in front of the entire school again, I will press charges with the DMLE for child abuse. No child, not even Weasley, should be treated in such a manner," Severus said, causing Minerva's eyebrows to rise into her hairline.

"You would do that for a Gryffindor, Severus?" Minerva asked in surprise.

"I would do it for any child, Minerva, be they Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, magical, squib or muggle. Having been exposed to similar public displays of chastisement myself, I see no positive character building aspects to tearing down the self-esteem of a child," Severus said righteously.

"I shall do as you ask, Severus. If you have no objection, I shall speak to the two boys first. Perhaps some additional time helping Pomona and her seventh years produce potion ingredients would be a helpful reminder to them concerning the importance of maintaining a healthy respect for all of their classes," Minerva said.

"Thank you, Minerva," Severus said and turned to go.

"And Severus," Minerva said as he turned.

Severus stopped and half turned his head to look at her from the edge of his vision.

"Thank you. Both for coming to me with this issue and for watching Mr. Potter's memories," Minerva said.

Severus nodded then left the staff lounge, leaving behind him an amazed yet happy Deputy Headmistress.

-oOoOo-

Harry, Hermione and Luna had all expressed their appreciation to Sir Nicholas for the invitation to his Deathday Party. Although the food had been unpalatable, the orchestra more of a cacophony and the manners of Sir Patrick Delaney-Podmore atrocious, the party had been interesting, fascinating and the ghosts seemed to appreciate not only their attendance, but the courtesy they showed to the dead. It was Harry who brought Sir Patrick up short when he expressed his position on the entire matter.

"Sir Nicholas," he announced loud enough that it had interrupted the headless horsemen's game of head hockey, "for saving my life, Sir, I am told by Miss Granger and Lady Lovegood that, under Founders' Law, I owe you a life debt which I fully intend to honour. Sir, if I can, I will find a way to correct your axeman's failing and severe your head from your torso. This, as a Lord of a Founding Family, I do swear," Harry said, drawing the sword the goblin warrior had given him and kneeling in front of Sir Nicholas.

All of the ghosts had stopped and stared at the young Lord and the earnest words he spoke echoed from the walls.

Sir Nicholas, floating in front of him, looked at the kneeling form of Harry. "Arise, My Lord, please. I am both honoured and humbled by your declaration, but there is no debt between us in my eyes," he said. When Harry arose, Sir Nicholas could clearly see Harry did not feel the same.

"Thank you, Sir Nicholas. I am honoured and humbled by your invitation to your Deathday party. Whether in life or in death, should you choose to have another, I humbly request you send me an invitation. I will always attend if I am able," Harry said.

The trio left shortly thereafter, walking towards the stairs to the Entrance Hall with the intention of entering the celebration in the Great Hall when Harry heard the same hatred-filled voice he had heard after his detention with Lockhart, "hunt... kill... feed..." He stopped and crouched, wand in hand.

"What's wrong, Harry?" Hermione whispered, crouching and grabbing Luna to pull her down and protect her.

Harry held his hand up for silence. He looked up and down the corridor but saw nothing. "The voice I heard from the other night," Harry whispered in explanation.

"So hungry... too long... only small things to eat... " he heard again, fainter this time.

"Can you hear it?" Harry whispered to the two now-frightened girls. Both of them shook their heads.

"time to feed... time to kill..." he heard, the voice growing fainter, sounding as if it was moving upwards._ Is this one of the ghost's idea of a joke?_ Harry wondered, but somehow knew this was no one's attempt at humour.

"Follow me," he whispered, helping the two girls to stand and running up the stairs to the Entrance Hall. He couldn't hear anything over the noise of the party in the Great Hall. He headed towards the stairs to the first floor and motioned for the girls to follow him. Both of them, he was proud to see, had their wands out and were maintaining a watch behind them as Harry maintained a watch ahead. He headed down the corridor, but heard the voice coming from above and moving away.

"Blood... I can smell blood... Fear ahead... time to feed..." he heard.

The time for stealth lost, he shouted, "Come on! It's going to kill someone!" he said, pounding up the stairs as fast as he could, the girls right behind him. Harry ran down the corridor to the end and turned the corner. The three of them ran to the end of the hall and turned the next corner. Harry held up his hand for them to stop. Just before the corner which would take them around to the second stairhead, something was glinting off the floor and an eerie reflection was coming from the wall, tainting everything with an all-too-familiar red glow. The three of them slowly approached, their wands searching for anything that moved. As they got closer, they could see foot-high words had been painted on the wall in what appeared to be blood. "**The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, beware.**" They continued their approach and saw that something was hung beneath one of the torches. As they got near the wall, Harry nearly slipped in a large puddle of water covering the floor beneath the windows, but both girls grabbed him. The girls cast Lumos to provide them better light. The three of them closed the distance to the wall and realised what it was hung beneath the torches.

Mrs. Norris, the caretaker's cat was hanging by her tail from the torch sconce. She was stiff, her eyes wide open, her mouth opened. It almost appeared as if her face were frozen in the iron grip of Fear itself.

Suddenly, the noise level in the corridor rose dramatically. The feast had ended and the students were on their way up. The sounds of happy, well-fed children filled the stairwells as students began climbing the stairs in a thunder of footfalls. As the students and professors entered the second floor, the ones in front stopped and a wave of whispered questions began at the top and washed all the way down to the Great Hall.

It would be later when they questioned the reasons for it, but Marcus Flint shouted out the words written on the wall followed by, "You'll all be next, Mudbloods!"

This brought the attention of Argus Filch. Needless to say, his reaction to seeing his cat hung by its tail from a torch sconce caused him to lose his objectivity. He began hurling accusations at Harry within seconds of seeing him.

The Headmaster, arriving with several other professors, called out the caretaker's name, causing Argus to stop mid-rant. Albus approached the trio and, without acknowledging their presence, moved past them and took the cat down from the sconce.

"Come with me, Argus," Dumbledore said, then looked at the trio. "I would appreciate your presence as well," he said to them. Harry nodded and took the girls hands, following behind the headmaster.

"Look at Potty holding hands!" a male voice called out and was quickly silenced and replaced with a wet, squelching sound as someone, most likely an older girl, accidentally kicked the miscreant in a most sensitive place as she turned to walk, once more, down the stairs. Dean, who witnessed the impact and felt sympathetic pain himself, never knew a Chaser could kick someone hard enough THERE to lift both of their feet off the ground. Dean wondered if the Pickford family would ever have children from that boy's loins.

The DADA professor offered up the use of his office for the meeting, so the group headed up one more flight of stairs

As they entered Lockhart's unlit office, Harry saw motion along the walls and drew his wand, causing both girls to do so as well. Apparently, not having learned his lesson previously, Lockhart attempted to grab at Harry to prevent him from firing curses at the paintings Lockhart had commissioned of himself and had so painstakingly sat for during their execution. As he lunged for Harry, Luna's foot shot out in front of his legs and he found himself falling at Harry's feet just as Severus cast a low-powered incendio to light the torches in their sconces.

When Harry realised the movement came from the paintings around the walls, he stowed his wand away then looked down at the fallen professor, whom Hermione was now helping up.

"Must have tripped," Lockhart said, looking fearfully at the hand being held out to him from the girl who had cursed him in the bookstore. He looked up at her face, which held an embarrassed smile, and took her hand, more for balance than for lifting assistance. He smiled at her, turning on his charm once more, noting her hand was warm and soft and that her pulse was racing. _Quite a pretty little thing, really,_ he thought. He kissed her hand and thanked her for helping him, not realising the look of anger he was getting from Luna or the disgust and embarrassment Hermione was feeling.

Lockhart stood and moved behind the three students, his hands resting on Hermione's shoulders. He was going on about the likely causes of Mrs. Norris' demise while Argus Filch sobbed uncontrollably.

Dumbledore was nearly whispering as he cast spells at the stiff animal, while tapping his wand against her head and body.

Hermione was beyond uncomfortable with the way Lockhart seemed to stroke her upper arms and shoulders while quickly squeezing them at the end of each sentence. Luna and Harry both felt Hermione's discomfort and both dealt with it in very different ways. Just as Dumbledore was straightening up, he looked over at Lockhart and then at Hermione and the fearful look on her face. He was about to say something when Luna and Harry moved. Luna stepped closer and stomped on Lockhart's left foot while Harry grabbed Hermione's right hand and pulled.

Lockhart suddenly felt as if a troll had stepped on his foot and the little tidbit in his hands was unceremoniously yanked from his grip. The combination of these two events happening simultaneously threw the man off-balance and he found himself, once more, tumbling to the ground. As he fell, Luna, with a small smile on her face, 'tripped' over him and fell as well, ramming her elbow into his temple and rendering him unconscious.

A much-relieved Hermione reached down to help Luna up. "All you okay, Luna?" Hermione asked in concern.

"I am MUCH better now, Hermione," Luna said, looking down at Lockhart with a vindictive smile.

"She's not dead, Argus," they heard Dumbledore say as Luna stood.

Argus asked how that was possible since she was stiff and unmoving. He had the job of cleaning up enough forgotten familiars to know stiff and unmoving animals were, in his experience, never alive.

"She has been petrified, but I do not know how... "Dumbledore said but was cut off by Filch's accusations.

"Ask him!" Argus shouted, pointing at Harry. "He did it!" Before Argus could get started, Albus interrupted him.

"No second-year student could do this, Argus. This is Dark Magic at its most terrible..." Albus was once more cut off by Filch's angry outburst.

"You saw what he wrote on the wall! He knows I'm a squib! HE DID..." Argus was shouting, frothing at the mouth when Harry out-shouted him in an angry whisper which reverberated from the very walls of the castle.

"I never touched Mrs. Norris, Master Filch. I actually like your cat, Sir, and would wish neither harm on her nor on you. I understand you are upset, but do not accuse me of causing harm to an innocent creature," Harry whispered, his voice eerily echoing from the walls. Then in a normal voice, he said, "and I have no idea what a squib is."

Hermione spoke up, "It's a derogatory name for someone born of magical parents who have no apparent magic." She then looked up at Filch, whose face was once more purpling in anger, and quickly looked down at her shoes.

"Well that's rubbish. He has a familiar. How can he be without magic?" Harry asked, looking first at Hermione, who was sending off small waves of fear at what Filch might do, and then at Filch, whose face was now drained of colour.

"You think she's my familiar?" Argus asked dumbfounded.

Harry looked at the caretaker with a perplexed expression. "She always knows where you are. She is always looking out for you. She always knows who you are looking for and she always finds the students doing the most offending things, doesn't she?" Harry asked.

"My familiar..." Argus whispered.

"If I may, Headmaster?" Professor Snape said from a dark corner. Although he had been a much nicer person to them lately, Harry and Hermione were concerned about what the professor was about to say.

"Yes, Professor Snape?" Albus asked.

"It is getting late and it is clear these children," Snape said, indicating the trio, "were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. I do not, however, recall seeing them at the feast this evening," Severus said, raising an eyebrow at the children.

"We were at Sir Nicholas' Deathday party, Sir," Hermione explained, "and when we were on our way to the feast, we heard a noise from upstairs and went to investigate. We came up the stairs and around the corner and that is when we found her." Severus was looking intently into Hermione's eyes as she spoke. She could not recall when she felt like this before, but she felt compelled to look at him.

Severus raised an eyebrow at her, paused a moment then looked at Dumbledore and Filch. He spoke to Argus, "You see, Master Filch, they likely interrupted whomever did intend the demise of your pet. These three likely saved her from death."

Argus looked down at his shoes, tears once more streaming down his cheeks. Minerva put a comforting arm around him. He finally raised his eyes and looked at Mrs. Norris' stiff body. "What can be done for her?" he asked, his voice breaking as clearly as was his heart.

Dumbledore looked at the caretaker, "Professor Sprout found a source for Mandrakes and has had her second-year students nurturing them. Once they are fully developed, Potions Master Snape will brew a restorative draught and we will use it to restore Mrs. Norris. In the meanwhile, I shall ask Madam Pomfrey to keep her safe in a box in her office. Both Professor Snape and I shall cast enchantments on her to ensure she comes to no further harm, Argus." He then looked at Minerva, "Professor McGonagall, could you please escort Master Filch to his quarters."

Minerva nodded and led the still-upset man out of the office.

Just as the door closed, Lockhart opened his eyes and shakily stood. "What happened? Where did that attractive little girl go?" he asked, looking around at the paintings. All of them pointed over his shoulder and held their fingers over their lips.

Severus looked at the man as if he was going to dissect him for potion ingredients. Albus cleared his throat, causing Gilderoy to turn around and look in panic at the three children, the Potions Master and the Headmaster.

"Apologies, Headmaster. I must have dozed off," Gilderoy said, trying to cover his slip.

"Indeed," Albus said, looking at Gilderoy over the tops of his glasses, "Perhaps, since you are so tired, we should all retire and get some well-deserved rest."

"Yes. That is an excellent idea," Gilderoy said, then looked down at the three children. "Perhaps I should escort these children back to their houses. It is on my way, after all."

Snape looked into the man's eyes and his own flared at the thoughts he was seeing there. "I actually have need to speak with them momentarily, so I shall escort them to where they need to be this evening," Severus said in a tone that clearly would not leave room for any argument.

"Well then," Gilderoy said, looking at the glare coming from Severus," I shall bid you all good dreams," and left his office.

Severus turned his head to Albus. Albus merely nodded, conjured a cat bed, placed Mrs. Norris in the cat bed, cast some charms on the cat bed and gestured for the four of them to leave ahead of him.

Once they exited the office, Albus cast a spell to lock the door. "I shall stop by the infirmary to speak with Madam Pomfrey and ask her to care for Mrs. Norris. Good evening, Professor Snape. Good evening, you three," Albus said and went down the stairs.

Severus watched Albus until he was out of sight. He then turned to the trio, "Follow me," he said and led them down to an empty classroom on the second floor.

Once they entered, he closed the door and cast privacy charms on the ceiling, floor and walls then cast a locking charm on the door. He turned around and had a grim expression on his face.

"Lord Potter," Severus said, staring unblinking at Harry, "while I will be vigilant in my watchfulness, please insure Miss Granger is never left alone with Professor Lockhart."

Harry looked shocked. "What is your concern, Potions Master Snape?"

Snape looked at Hermione then looked back at Harry, "All I will say is he seems to have an unhealthy attraction to Miss Granger."

Harry looked from Severus to Hermione. Hermione looked sick; as if she was about to vomit on the floor. He then looked to Luna. She, too, looked ill. He then looked back at Severus. "It shall be as you recommend, Potions Master. Was that all of the business you had with us this evening?" Harry asked, still somewhat fearful of Hermione's earlier stretching of the truth.

"Not entirely, Mr. Potter," Severus said, then looked at Hermione, who was now having her hand held in support by Luna. "Miss Granger?" he asked.

Hermione looked up at Severus, "Yes, Professor Snape?" she asked, a quiver of nausea and fear in her voice.

"I appreciate the sincerity with which you covered for your friend this evening, and understand the reasons you felt you needed to do so. As I see your energy level is slipping, I shall not discuss it with you this evening, but I would like you to be prepared to tell me what information you were withholding this evening at a later date," he then turned to Harry, "and I expect you," then turned to Luna, "or you," he then turned back to Harry, "to remain with Miss Granger at all times."

Luna responded, "I promise, Sir," and moved her hold on Hermione's hand to one around her arm.

Harry caught Severus' attention, "We shall, Sir."

Severus nodded. "I presume you can make it to your quarters on your own?" he asked.

Luna answered by calling Gallmonger. The elf greeted Professor Snape then popped the three away to the Founders' Quarters. Severus took his spellwork down and headed to the Slytherin Dungeon. He had some sixth- and seventh-year students to talk with about a professor of questionable habits.

-oOoOo-

Gallmonger truly outdid himself on the meal. He had determined all three of their favourite dishes and managed to have the kitchen elves not only prepare them, but prepare dishes which complemented their favourites. Granted Hermione's favourite dish of curried lamb with mango chutney had been somewhat challenging, Gallmonger had remembered Lord Harry owned a restaurant in Diagon Alley and merely popped in there and explained to one of the chefs what he needed to surprise Lady Hermione. He was wringing his hands the entire time he was explaining because the chef's smile grew bigger and bigger as he did so.

"Come back in fifteen minutes, Master Gallmonger, and I shall have our Lord's Lady's meal prepared," Chef Singh had said. True to her word, fifteen minutes later she had Hermione's meal ready and waiting in Ever-Warm® containers. Gallmonger cried tears of thanks and popped out with the containers.

Hermione had her curry. Luna had her grilled asparagus, steamed broccoli and baked chicken. Harry had his beef pie, corn-mashed potatoes and oven-roasted vegetables. They all had berry pie and treacle tart for dessert.

Harry had wanted to talk about Lockhart, but thought that Hermione was in too good a mood to bring her down with that topic. Instead, Hermione broached a topic which had him wondering how it was that life, for him, just kept getting better.

"Harry," Hermione asked, looking from Luna to Harry, "how would you feel if Luna and I taught Susan how to kiss and magically hug someone?" she asked.

Harry looked thoughtfully, then a naughty smile bloomed on his face, "Do I get to watch?" he asked.

Luna smiled at the question. "That seems to be a fair price to me," Luna said.

Hermione, however, was being self-conscious. _Why does he want to see other girls getting that done to them? Aren't we pretty enough for him?_ "Why do you want to watch them, Harry?" she asked, letting a bit of the insecurity leak into her voice.

Harry looked at her in concern, but answered the question honestly. "Because I like to watch the two of you kiss and I want to watch while you kiss other girls. It is amazing to watch and I wasn't allowed at the first few sessions of kissing practice, so you both have some sessions to make up with me." He then turned thoughtful for a moment and asked a pointed question. "Why Susan? Does Neville know about this? I would not want Neville's feelings being hurt."

Hermione looked at Luna then looked at Harry in fear, expecting him to be angry at what she was about to tell him. "I gave Luna permission to give Susan a kiss in the girl's loo at Fortescue's the day before the will reading. Susan wanted to know what it was like to kiss a girl and Luna kissed her and magically hugged her. Susan wants to kiss Neville and Hannah with magical hugs," she explained.

Instead of getting angry at her, Harry had more questions. "Will Susan be teaching Neville how to do this? Because I am not teaching a boy how to do this. I don't mind making girls feel really good, but making boys do that... Yuch!" Harry said, making an exaggerated disgusted face.

Luna and Hermione both laughed; Luna out of amusement and Hermione out of relief.

Hermione answered him, "I think she is going to teach Hannah first and then the two of them are probably going to gang up on him."

Harry grinned. "I think Neville is going to be a happy wizard," he said, then began laughing.

Hermione looked at Harry with a smile, pulling Luna in closer to herself. "What is so funny over there, Mr. Potter?" she asked with false sternness in her voice.

Harry took a minute to control himself before he could explain. "When I hug you two, I have to be really careful and use only a small amount of my magic to hug you because your magics, as I see them, are so much smaller than mine. Susan's and Hannah's magics are half the size of either one of yours. I can barely see Neville's magic. Their hugging him is going to make him feel REALLY good!" Harry exclaimed and began laughing again. Luna joined in as well.

Hermione, however, was now concerned. _Oh no!_ she thought, wondering how they could keep Susan and Hannah from just running him over with their magic.

-oOoOo-

-o-AN-o-


	19. A Very Full Day, A Very Late Night

Chapter 19

-o-AN-o-  
>More thanks to texan-muggle for his proofreading.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>A special thanks to Alexia for reaffirming that yes, twelve-, thirteen- and fourteen-year-old girls can have romantic relationships with other girls and that, as it can be with boys, it hurts to be on the outs with someone you feel you love. She also pointed out that, for her, love usually starts out with "look" then "stare" then "dare" then "like" but sometimes it comes out of nowhere and mugs you like a thug and lays your heart out on the pavement, bloody and beating for all to see. Her words, not mine.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>Several people PM'd me concerning Filch and Mrs. Norris. A squib simply does not have enough magic to attract, much less keep a bond with a familiar. Harry is more attuned to individuals' magical fields than most people so can actually see Argus has one. There are more ways to bind one's magic than just spells, charms, curses, runes and objects. Some of these ways can only be removed by an expert mind healer or a gifted, muggle-born psychologist. Who's to say what Argus' impediment is, other than he now has an inkling that he is not without magic.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>For Hermione's birthday gift, the idea came from likely one of the finest publicly-accessible purveyors of the written word in the world, Peter Harrington. While some may find this a bit of an extravagance, I have only ever found one better book seller and her's is a private business.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>I do try to keep the idioms to within the realm of the late nineteenth century, however realise Hermione is a muggle-born so will use current words and phrases aloud and in her mind.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>Someone in a review suggested I was ramming a Good!Snape down the readers' throats. Personally, I can only imagine what effects experiencing nearly ten years of hellish torture in the span of three days would do to one's mind and attitude, not only about the individual who survived it, but about everything else in life. Considering, in addition to this, Severus is no longer affected by the soul-darkening influence of the twisted, murder-powered Protean charm upon his arm, body and conscience. The only darkness remaining from that is the pain his late victim still suffers, for which he still has much to atone for. Every infinitesimal step towards the true light leads him closer to salvation. He is driven to atone for all of his past mistakes, as is Dumbledore. Both must also accept the criticism of those they have wronged.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>As always, I do hope you continue to enjoy reading this story. I continue to publish as it comes back to me from the truly wonderful people who are editing and proofreading for me.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>-oOoOo-<p>

Harry was surrounded by warmth and had a weight sprawled across him and another on his chest. He froze for a moment, his self-preservation reflexes taking over. Something was amiss. He knew it was too early for his normal just-before-dawn wakefulness. He carefully, slowly and quietly slid his wand from his wrist holster. There is was again. A loud, regular hammering sound. He squinted his eyes open and saw movement in the dim torchlight. On the wall opposite the bed was a house elf. It was wearing a disgustingly-filthy tea towel. Every few minutes it would look at the bed then turn and begin banging its head against the wall, the sound reverberating throughout the bedchambers. "Dobby," Harry whispered.

The house elf looked up at Harry and smiled. "The Great Harry Potter remembers Dobby's name!" the house elf shouted, overjoyed.

Harry quickly looked at the two girls, both of whom were still deeply asleep.

Dobby looked at Harry then at the girls. "Dobby casts silencing spells on the Great Harry Potter's wives so our conversation not disturbed," Dobby said, wringing his hands together.

Harry's relief was clear in his expression. "Thank you for that, Dobby," he said.

"The Great Harry Potter thanks Dobby! Dobby is unworthy! Dobby not able to keep the Great Harry Potter safe from getting on train..." Dobby was shouting when Harry's expression turned to one of anger.

"YOU! You're the one who closed the portal on the platform!" Harry accused.

Dobby looked at Harry nervously. "The Great Harry Potter must be kept safe. Yous should not be at Hogwarts. Great danger here!" Dobby shouted in despair.

"Dobby, am I the only one in danger here?" Harry asked, regaining control over his anger.

"No!" Dobby cried out. "All are in danger, but the Great Harry Potter MUST be kept safe!" Dobby practically screamed.

"Dobby, I cannot leave and abandon everyone else. How great would I be if I ran away and left everyone else to face this danger, whatever it is?" Harry asked, anguish in his voice.

Dobby looked at Harry with a heightened sense of awe, which was reflected in his voice, "Harry Potter is even greater than Dobby had been told. Harry Potter risks himself so all may be safe. Dobby is ashamed!" he shouted with tears streaming from his eyes. He turned again and rammed his head into the wall. Bang! Bang! Bang!

"DOBBY!" Harry shouted. The elf stopped and turned around. "You are to NEVER punish yourself. You have done nothing to deserve punishment," Harry said, troubled by the elf's seemingly overriding need to bring harm to himself. He felt a pulse of magic leave him and strike the elf.

Dobby acted as if he had been thrown bodily into the wall. SMACK! Dobby fell on his face, then pushed himself up again and looked at Harry sadly. "It won't work, Harry Potter. Bad Master cast evil, dark magic on all family elves. Elves now not even listen to Lady Loveygood. Elves still not hurt wizards or witches or tell where they is, but elves no longer have honour in family oaths," Dobby said sadly.

The pulse of magic from Harry caused Luna to begin crying out in fear in her sleep and for Hermione to begin half-forming words.

Dobby looked at the two girls in fear and snapped his fingers, disappearing with a pop.

_Luna must have heard the pop_, Harry thought, as she quickly sat up, her wand in her hand, as she scanned the room. Seeing nothing, she did what she felt appropriate. "Beltchirp! I need you!" she shouted, loud enough to startle Hermione who was, once again, using Harry as her mattress.

Beltchirp appeared, his arms out, his hands spread wide and a look of immeasurable anger on his face. He, too, spun around the room, looking for enemies. He turned to look at the bed, his features softening at seeing the girls' wands out and scanning the room. He knelt down and looked at the floor. "How may Beltchirp serve my Lord and Ladies?" he asked, his voice calming the girls.

"Beltchirp, there was an elf here before you arrived. Can you tell me who it was?" Luna asked.

Beltchirp began sniffing around the room, but it was Harry who identified the elf. "It was Dobby. He came to warn me again," Harry said.

"Dobby! Come to me!" Luna called out and waited a few moments. "Dobby! I command you to answer my call!" she shouted.

Harry tapped her on the shoulder. Luna turned to look at him. "He won't come. He said something about Bad Master casting some sort of dark magic on all his elves so they won't come when you try to call them," Harry explained.

Luna looked at Harry, her expression turning from one of shock to one of anger. Her features then calmed once more. She turned back to Beltchirp. "Beltchirp, thank you for coming and for being so diligent. I apologise for taking you from your duties," Luna said.

Beltchirp bowed, tears leaking down his cheeks. "Lady Luna, I have no more important duty than to ensure your safety and the safety of your Lord and Lady. I am honoured to serve our House and will always be there for you when you call," the elf said.

Luna scooted off the bed, walked over to the elf, knelt down and drew him into her arms in a hug, shocking the elf completely, even though he thought he was used to the idiosyncrasies of his Lord and Ladies.

Luna released her hug but held onto Beltchirp's shoulders. "It is we who are honoured to have such dedicated elves in our house," Luna said, then released the elf and stood.

Beltchirp nodded, though he was stunned. He finally found his voice. "Lady Luna, should you, your Lady or your Lord need anything at all, do not hesitate to call and all will answer if needs be," Beltchirp said, then popped away.

Luna turned around and padded back over to the bed. Hermione was sitting on the edge, while Harry was sitting up in the middle. "Well, that was exhilarating, and completely annoying," Luna said with a frown. She stood in front of Hermione, looking down at the floor.

Harry was fascinated by the interactions between these two. Sometimes it seemed like Luna was in charge, but when that happened, it seemed Luna always asked Hermione's permission first and then came to Hermione, and not him, for approval afterwards. He wasn't upset with the situation. He just found it somewhat counter-intuitive. When he reflected on Dan and Emma and their interaction, it seemed to him the two of them were equals in their relationship. Comparing his relationship with Hermione, more often than not, she deferred to him, but there were times she took charge. With Luna and him, it was much the same, except Luna deferred to him much more often; yet even then, she seemed to seek Hermione's approval first and foremost. He was drawn out of his contemplation by Hermione.

"Ask, Harry. I can feel you questioning something or unsure about something," Hermione said, holding Luna's hands and looking at the demure little blonde.

Harry explained his observation and tried to phrase it in a non-confrontational manner.

Luna looked up at Harry then quickly looked at the floor once more before she spoke. "I am sorry, Harry. It's just... well... I've never had a real, all-the-time friend who was a girl and Hermione is older than I am and I... I guess I'm scared of driving her away from me," she said, beginning to cry.

Hermione pulled on Luna's knees, causing the smaller girl to straddle her legs and end up sitting on Hermione's thighs. Hermione continued pulling on her, wrapping her arms around her back until the two of them were stomach-to-stomach and nose-to-nose. "Little Moon," Hermione said and briefly kissed Luna before pulling her face back a small amount, "why are you crying?" she asked, not understanding the fear she was hearing in Luna's voice.

"I'm always afraid I am going to scare you away or hurt you. I guess I am just happy Harry wants to spend any time with me, and it would hurt me if I lost him. It would hurt a lot," Luna said, looking up at Harry, then looking at Hermione and crying harder before looking back at the floor.

Hermione pulled Luna's head down against her. "Shush, Little Moon. Harry would never leave you. I know this in my heart of hearts," Hermione said, concerned this did not reduce the level of distress Luna was displaying. It actually seemed to intensify it, as Luna began sobbing. "Luna-Love, what is wrong?" Hermione asked, beginning to become tearful and upset herself.

"I don't want to lose you!" Luna shouted in despair, wrapping her arms around Hermione and burying her head in Hermione's hair.

"Hold on tight, Little Moon," Hermione said, scooting further back on the bed, the little witch's legs and arms wrapped tightly around her waist and and neck. Hermione got into the middle of the bed and walked on her hands and knees to the head of the bed next to Harry, who moved over to give Hermione room. Hermione lowered Luna down to the bed and lowered Luna's head down to the pillow. "Relax your grip, Luna-Love," Hermione instructed.

Luna's arms and legs slackened their grip and Hermione drew Luna's arms from around her neck and pinned them gently above Luna's head on the pillow. Luna looked into Hermione's eyes as Hermione scooted up a bit so she was sitting on her feet, pinning Luna's legs apart with her night shirt riding to just below the bottom of her tiny breasts. Luna gasped.

Hermione began speaking softly to her but loud enough for Harry to hear. "Little Moon. There are four people alive on this planet of ours that I love with all of my heart. I cannot discern the depth of the love I have for them, only the type of love I have for them. I love Mum and Daddy. They are supportive, protective, they provide hugs whenever I ask or whenever I need them. They are amazing. They accepted Harry as their son even before I asked and they accepted you in their hearts when you were only our friend. My love for them knows no bounds and I would not do anything, ever, to disappoint them in me. I love Harry both as a friend and," Hermione looked over at Harry, "as my husband," her eyes began glistening as she thought about what that meant to her. She looked back at Luna. "He has saved my life on at least two occasions. He has never treated me with anything but kindness, respect and compassion. I seriously doubt I could do any better for a husband." She looked over at Harry again. "Hey you," she said softly, "come here."

Harry leaned over, knowing what she wanted and gave her a brief, yet intimate, kiss.

Hermione kept her eyes closed a few moments after the kiss ended. She shivered a bit then opened her eyes and looked back at Luna. "Then there is my Sister-Wife. The girl who was a friend and is now so, so much more than what I ever even dreamed of. Luna, I was scared when I first realised what was happening, and I did try to deny it. But now I would happily shout it out at the top of the astronomy tower. I LOVE you, Little Moon. I think I loved you from the first time I hugged you. I know now I loved you when you kissed me our first movie night. I will never stop loving you. We might not always get along, and I may not always like you, and that is my failing. But I don't plan to stop loving you. And if you need to hear it with your own ears and see it with your own eyes and feel it with your own lips, then so be it," Hermione said adamantly, then pinned Luna's arms more firmly and gripped her chin gently. Hermione pulled her mouth open and slowly, lovingly, lowered her mouth to Luna's and slid her hand down Luna's neck while her tongue gently languished in Luna's mouth, licking not just the tip of her tongue, but massaging her tongue along its entire length and all around it. Luna was enjoying the oral sensation she was experiencing, but her eyes opened wide in surprise as Hermione's hand continued its journey and slid under her night shirt. She felt first one, then the other breast cupped and the nipple fingered to hardness. Luna began seeing spots before her eyes, then remembered to breathe through her nose. She became more shocked as Hermione's hand continued to slide down, but it stopped at her stomach as Hermione broke the kiss.

Hermione looked into Luna's eyes and in a breathy voice said, "I, Hermione Jane Potter, **LOVE** you, Luna Selene Potter, and I will walk through the very depths of evil for you," she said, remembering a line from one of the romance novels she was reading that seemed appropriate.

"That was so amazing to watch," Harry said in awe, somewhat breaking the mood as both girls looked at him and smiled shyly, having forgotten about him in the intensity of the moment.

Harry looked at the two of them and smiled a shy smile of his own. "And I could watch the two of you kiss for hours and never tire of it or get jealous," he said, blushing slightly.

Hermione and Luna sat up and kissed him on his cheeks. He wrapped an arm around each of them and pulled them down so one lay on either side of him. "How did I get to be so blessed?" he asked. It would be the same question he would ask when he awoke in the morning, a warm little body on top of him and one wrapped up in his arm.

-oOoOo-

Draco woke early, as was normal for him. What was unusual was the fury with which he awoke. Never before could he remember being so angry. He had been paraded in front of all of the first years from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff for them to pet. It was as if he was some mongrel dog being manhandled by those pathetic squibs, half-bloods and mudbloods. Even Uncle Severus, his very own godfather, had turned against him. Not only had he foiled a plan of making Potter look bad, he had made him strip naked, burned a set of his favourite robes and shoes and then forced him through the animagus transformation, not once but twice, and the second time had been for the amusement of the unwashed masses. Now it would take him twice as long to master the animagus change. He wasn't even certain he wanted to learn how to, now that he knew his form was that of a 'ratting' dog. Just the thought of him turning into a tiny, yappy dog made him want to vomit.

In his dream, Professor Snape had stripped him naked and botched the enchantment, causing Draco to change back to his human form. No one seemed to notice anything except many more boys were now interested in petting him. Someone had even conjured a bell stuck to the end of his manhood. When one of his professors approached, his smile glinting menacingly, Severus had simply handed the man the end of the leash and told him not to hurt him. The professor had taken him to his quarters, poured oil over him and began moving his hands all over him to ensure he was liberally covered from feet to hair and everywhere in between. The professor then took off his own robes and approached Draco, the glint of lust in his eye.

Draco was awash in perspiration, waking up with an overwhelming need to vomit. The anger of his dream awakening gone, replaced with fear and revulsion. His mind was reeling and his body responded as best it could. Draco vomited all over his bed. After the fifth time, his empty heaving changed to silent sobbing at the horrors of his dream. He closed his eyes and called for a house elf to provide him with clean bedding and a glass of water to wash his mouth out. As the memory of his dream faded, anger took over his rational self and he remembered the reality of being hauled out around the house tables to be petted. He was furious. He threw on the previous day's robes and walked to the showers. He felt the need to wash the filth from his body. Once was not enough. On the sixth time of washing himself everywhere, he began to feel clean. On the eighth washing he felt clean and washed. As he washed, he plotted. The longer it took him to feel clean, the more time he had to think of ways to sabotage Potter and his filthy mudblood bitch of a friend. Yes, he would be cunning. He knew the perfect way to deal with this situation, even with his godfather being charmed away from him somehow. And he had just the patsy to distract the rest of the class while he did the deed. _Yes,_ Draco thought, with a predatory smile, _time for Potter and his know-it-all mudblood bitch to die._

-oOoOo-

Potions was now one of Harry's, Neville's and Hermione's favourite classes. Since Severus had watched the memories Harry provided to the Goblins, he was a much-changed man. Hermione had read in Materia Magica the only way that day's potion could go awry was if fire salamander tongue was introduced into the potion at any point past step five. The easiest method of preventing this from happening was to add a tablespoon plus a pinch of yellow cornmeal at step two when adding the lice wings. If no salamander tongue was added, it would be considered a neutral ingredient. If salamander tongue was added, the potion would solidify into a multi-coloured crystalline matrix with the same structural and optical qualities as synthetic sapphire. Without the cornmeal, the addition of salamander tongue would cause a pyrophoric solid to form, igniting the moment the reaction had completed and, due to the iron of the cauldron, burn in an top-down direction through the top of the cauldron at more than three thousand degrees centigrade. The cornmeal was a bit of inexpensive insurance. Hermione had added this inert ingredient to both her cauldron as well as Neville's and Dean's cauldron.

Both teams of Gryffindors were just completing step seven when they heard a loud, pained scream from the left side of the classroom. They saw that Millicent Bulstrode's cauldron had fractured due to excessive heat. Apparently Vincent Crabbe had been a bit overzealous with his heating charm. Millicent had the syrupy potion spilled all over her robes and her legs were being burned by the contact.

Severus was running over, but it was Daphne and Hermione who both had cold aguamenti charms cast at the girl's legs and feet to cool the potion and her legs. This was the moment Draco had been waiting for. He quickly tossed the first and then the second fire salamander tongues at the two cauldrons nearest his nemesis. He was waiting for the attention to turn to the two nearly-exploding cauldrons.

Severus was beside himself at not having paid closer attention to the temperature of the students' cauldrons and more than half the ire he was displaying was targeted on himself. "How many times have I instructed you to read the directions carefully and maintain an appropriate level of heat on your cauldrons? They are made from iron, you imbeciles, not steel or gold!" Severus shouted, casting numbing, cooling and anti-inflammation spells on Millicent. The large Slytherin girl was beginning to go into shock at the damage done to her legs. Severus cast a small silver badger, which hopped to the ground and practically flew along the floor, going straight through the door. Millicent was clearly in a great deal of pain, but was stoically gripping her thighs in an effort to keep the pain controlled. Daphne, Tracey and Pansy were clearly upset with Vincent, though one could only tell by looking at the girls' eyes. It wasn't until Pansy looked over at Draco to see what his reaction was that anything appeared amiss. Draco was paying no attention to Millicent's plight. Instead, he was closely watching the Gryffindor side of the room. More specifically, he seemed to be staring at Hermione Granger, the Ravenclaw-smart girl in Gryffindor. _How dare he look at that little mudblood tramp!_ she screamed in her mind, looking back at the fallen Slytherin girl, who was now shaking from being doused with cold water. Hermione and Daphne had cancelled their charms as Severus had approached, seeing the water had done its work to cool the potion and reduce the damage caused by the scalding liquid.

All of the students jumped as the door burst open, allowing Madam Pomfrey and Headmaster Dumbledore to enter the classroom. Madam Pomfrey ran over and knelt next to the burned girl and quickly assessed the situation.

"I need to get her to the infirmary. She is in shock and her legs are severely burned," Poppy said, calling a house elf. The house elf grabbed hold of Millicent's arm and Poppy's hand, then popped them both away.

Albus looked at the cauldron then looked around the classroom, pausing for a moment as his eyes swept passed Draco. He then moved on to look at Harry, then Hermione.

"It would appear the emergency is over, Professor Snape. I will assist Madam Pomfrey in healing Miss Bulstrode. Please continue with your class," Albus said, then called a house elf and directed the elf to pop him to the infirmary.

Draco was beside himself. The first sign that something had gone wrong with his plan was when Harry simply pulled on Hermione's robes and pointed to the contents of the cauldron. Neville was also in animated whispers of surprise and shock as Hermione used her dissecting knife to remove a the salamander tongue from the top of the cauldron she shared with Harry. Severus was now walking through the classroom, checking all of the student pairs to ensure nothing was out of order. When he walked behind Harry and Hermione's cauldron, the colour of the contents was not what he was expecting. Neither did he expect to see Hermione with a salamander tongue on her dissecting knife.

"What is the meaning of this, Miss Granger?" Severus whispered, bending low so the words were spoken directly into her ear.

"Sir," she said, somewhat startled, the whispered back to him, "when Miss Bulstrode cried out in pain, I moved to help her the only way I knew how. When it was over, Harry drew my attention to what happened to our potion for the day and I saw this in the top of the reaction."

Severus looked over at Neville's and Dean's cauldron and noted the same reaction had occurred in their cauldron as well.

"And how is it the four of you are still alive then?" Severus asked, keeping his anger in check.

"Sir, Materia Magica indicated that adding cornmeal to the brewing at step two would prevent the only possible negative reaction, adding salamander tongue after completing step five, and would be considered a neutral ingredient otherwise, so the four of us added cornmeal at step two," Hermione explained, waiting for the explosion to come from her professor. She was both pleased and embarrassed when Severus spoke next.

"That is a very, very wise thing to do, Miss Granger. Please accept twenty-five points for Gryffindor for having a clear understanding of today's work and maintaining the safety of the classroom when my attention was diverted to more obvious matters," Severus said softly.

He suddenly stood and stormed to the front of the classroom, noting there was only fifteen minutes left in the class.

"Students, your attention. We have fifteen minutes left. I only see four pairs of students near to completing today's potion. None of the remaining teams are near enough to completion to expect fifteen more minutes will help. Please bottle what you have at the moment, wax seal the vials and label them with your name and the number of the step you achieved then clean your table and your cauldron. I see most of you will receive an Acceptable for the day. Only two students today will receive Troll minuses," Severus announced.

Everyone except Neville, Dean, Harry and Hermione bottled the contents of their results for the day, which Severus collected.

Once he had finished collecting all of the potions, he had one more announcement to make. "Mister Potter, Mister Longbottom, Mister Thomas, Miss Granger and Miss Greengrass. You five shall remain when class leaves."

The last five minutes of class was spent cleaning the tables. The students filed out of the room, looking at those who remained behind.

Once all of the remaining students left, Severus closed the door and strode to the front of the room. "Miss Greengrass, Miss Granger. Your actions today quite likely saved Miss Bulstrode's legs and possibly her life. I would like you both to take fifty points for your part in today," Severus said.

Both girls were shocked.

Daphne had received house points from Professor Snape before, but never so many at one time. "Thank you, Sir," Daphne said.

Hermione was surprised she received any points at all. "Thank you, Sir," Hermione said.

Severus looked at the Slytherin girl, "You may go now, Miss Greengrass."

Daphne nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her.

Severus cast a locking charm on the door and privacy charms on the floor, ceiling and all four walls then looked at the four Gryffindors.

"I have asked you four to remain behind because of a matter of academic sabotage," Severus said mildly.

Hermione and Neville sucked in air while Harry and Dean looked bewildered. "What do you mean, Professor?" Harry asked.

"Mister Potter, it would appear someone is attempting to prevent you and your fellow Gryffindors from passing this class. Considering both yours and Miss Granger's cauldron and Mister Longbottom's and Mister Thomas' cauldrons had nearly completed potions in them, I choose to give you three gentlemen Exceeds Expectations for the day," Severus said, then pinned Hermione with a look. "You, however, Miss Granger, due to your past record, the speed with which you acted in helping another student in turmoil and your rightful inclusion of cornmeal in your potion during the correct stage in brewing, will receive an Outstanding for the day and my gratitude," Severus said with a small smile, which he quickly schooled.

All four of the students thanked Severus for his generosity. He noted Hermione was blushing and smiling at being given an Outstanding for the day.

"Now all of you run along and get your lunches. It wouldn't be good if you went to your next class with no food to fuel your minds and bodies," Severus said, unlocking the door and releasing the privacy charms.

Under his breath Severus whispered, looking up at the ceiling, "And thank Salazar for Hermione Granger," as Severus imagined the conflagration the two cauldrons of potion would have made, likely incinerating everything in the classroom as the air would have approached nine hundred degrees centigrade faster than he would have been able to open the door or call for help. Forty-eight dead students and one dead professor would have been the wrong kind of ending for Severus Snape. He fully suspected he knew the instigator of this little plan and would be having most serious words with him when he knew with a greater level of certainty. And, if need be, Draco Malfoy would die.

-oOoOo-

Lunch was miserable for Harry. While those in Gryffindor didn't cower too much from him, some of the older Ravenclaws and most of Hufflepuff shied away from him. The people he knew he could count on had all detected the fear the rest of the students showed, but had no immediate answers for him. They were, however, bold in their support of him.

"Harry, it is utter rubbish," Penelope said, "since there is, in fact, no family named Slytherin, there can be no heir."

"Harry, even if the line that is meant is the Gaunt line, that family is dead and gone. Oh you have one thirty-second of the line and have claimed Lordship..." Roger was saying when he was cut off by a surprised exclamation from Harry.

"What?" Harry exclaimed, then turned his head around to see who was listening. In whispered tones, Harry continued, "How did you find out about that, Roger?" All of the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were listening intently.

Roger was somewhat taken aback. "Harry, it is no secret. The current head of any family is listed on the Tablet of Houses at the entrance to the Wizengamot Chambers. I was taking a tour of the Ministry with my father on the thirty-first of August and was somewhat surprised to see your name listed as head of many of the families. I believe you are also Lord Abbot and Lord York, though I can understand why you usually use the honorific of 'Lord Potter'."

For the first time Roger could remember seeing him, Harry was afraid. He noticed Harry briefly looking up at the staff table, then back down at his plate.

Hermione and Luna could feel the fear radiating from their husband and comforted him as best they could. "Harry, no one who knows you will look at you any differently," Hermione said softly, nearly whispering in his ear.

Luna looked past Harry at Hermione. Hermione simply nodded. "Harry-Love, you know Hermione and I love you and will not abandon you for any reason. We know you are not the one writing on the wall. We know you didn't petrify Mrs. Norris. We love you, Harry James," Luna said. She took his chin and briefly kissed him on the lips. He smiled at her smiling at him.

He felt another hand under his chin and turned his head the other way. "We love you, Harry James," Hermione said and she, too, briefly kissed him on the lips.

Padma snorted pumpkin juice out of her nose as the girls kissed Harry, spraying Harry, Luna, Hermione and Roger with pumpkin juice. She blew the remainder of the pumpkin juice from her nose then apologised profusely. She pulled her wand to cast a cleaning charm on the four of them, only to find two glowing wand tips in her face.

Padma slowly lowered her wand. "I am truly apologetic. I did not mean to make a mess of you and I was just going to cast a cleaning charm on the four of you," Padma said, slighly cringing each time Hermione's and Luna's wands pulsed. The two girls lowered their wands as well.

Padma cast the cleaning charm and all four students were once again clean. "Thank you, Miss Patil," Hermione said formally. _Gosh she is cute!_ Hermione exclaimed in her mind. This mirrored Luna's and Harry's opinions as well.

Luna looked at the beautiful girl sitting across from Harry and she, too, apologised, "My apologies as well, Miss Patil, for drawing my wand on you. It was rather rude of me," she said.

"Not at all," Padma said, blushing at all of the attention, especially the attention from her Secret Goddess, "and please, call me Padma," she said.

"Thank you, Padma. I believe I shall," Luna said with a smile.

-oOoOo-

History of Magic was boring as usual. It was actually amazing anyone could hear the late Professor Binns speaking at all considering Ron Weasley's loud snoring reverberating from the back of the classroom.

Hermione had asked Professor Binns about the Chamber of Secrets. He explained the legend of the Chamber, the monster which supposedly lived within and the history of the Chamber, but had indicated the school had been searched several times in the past for this mythical auditorium and it had never been found. Binns became agitated when Dean had pushed about only the Heir of Slytherin being able to open the Chamber and even more annoyed when Parvati began talking about using Dark Magic to open the Chamber.

Binns yelled in his frustration, loud enough to awaken Ron, "Enough! There is no mythical Chamber of Secrets built by Salazar Slytherin! It does not exist! We will now discuss the verifiable, documented facts of History now and not another word of the non-existent Chamber of Secrets!"

All of the students were startled at Binns' outburst and quickly quieted. The professor looked about the room and began his lecturing again, "In 1216 by common reckoning, the Goblin commander, Smeltgold..."

-oOoOo-

After History of Magic, Harry, Dean, Neville and Hermione were caught up in the pre-lunch crowd moving through the corridor. Colin Creevey, a first-year Gryffindor, caught in the crowd moving the other direction, waved and shouted to Harry. Harry and Hermione waved a greeting in return but were quickly carried past the younger Gryffindor. The four of them managed to get out of the main corridor and found themselves in the same place Harry, Hermione and Luna had been the night of Halloween; outside the girls lavatory on the second floor; a place Master Filch had been patrolling every thirty minutes since his cat, Mrs. Norris, had been petrified.

Since Master Filch was nowhere in sight, Harry suggested they take a closer look. Neville found scorch marks on the floor. Hermione, however, found something all too strange. "Come here. Look at this!" she whispered excitedly.

The three boys carefully approached Hermione to look at a line of spiders fighting to get through a small crack in one of the windows. Hermione asked the boys, "Have any of you ever seen spiders behaving this way before?" She received her answer in the form of three shaking heads. "Neither have I," she responded.

She looked around as Harry asked, "What happened to all the water that was here?" He took a few steps back, trying to remember the way it had been that night. "It was right about here," he said and turned, seeing a sign which read "Girls Lavatory". He took a step back as if the door was too hot to be near. He blushed.

Neville looked where Harry was standing. "Can't go in there, Harry," Neville said.

"It's just Moaning Myrtle's place. Come on. Let's have a look," Hermione said, ignoring the "Out of Order" sign, opening the door and walking in.

The three boys shrugged and followed Hermione inside. It had to be one of the dreariest bathrooms Harry had ever been in. The bathroom had clearly not been maintained properly for a number of years; the sinks were chipped, the paint was peeling, the mirrors were grey with filth and a dank miasma languished in the air like a mouldy, fungus-filled cavern. Hermione went to the furthest stall and called out to the resident ghost, "Hello, Myrtle. Are you there?"

A bespectacled, pudgy, wretched-looking ghost of a girl floated above the fractured toilet tank and looked at the four. "This is a girl's lavatory. They're not girls!" she screeched, pointing at the three boys.

"No. No, they aren't. I just wanted to show them what it was like in here," Hermione explained.

Harry touched Hermione's hand and whispered, "Ask her if she saw anything."

The ghostly girl shrieked in anger at being whispered about and disappeared into the toilet bowl, splashing the four with the murky, stagnant water.

Dean, of course, expressed the opinion of all four of them, "Yuch! Now I need to get a shower before dinner!"

Hermione, however, was beyond fussing with such things as she took her wand from its holster and cast a cleaning charm on all four of them as she remarked, "Really now, that was almost cheerful for Myrtle."

The four of them walked out of the bathroom only to be faced with the Gryffindor Prefect, Percy Weasley coming up the stairs. His eyes opened wide and he looked near bursting. "What are the four of you DOING in there?" he shouted.

Hermione looked at him and said primly, "We were looking for clues as to what happened to the caretaker's familiar."

Percy walked up to them and looked down at Hermione, then looked around to ensure no one else was within earshot. "Do you know what that looks like, young miss? Coming here with three boys while everyone else is at dinner. For shame! Now the lot of you, get down to the Great Hall for dinner and no more of this 'investigating'! Leave that to the adults here!" he whispered loudly, his face reddening in embarrassment at the thoughts running through his head. He moved to stand between the bathroom door and the four and shooed them on their way.

Harry and Hermione were a bit outraged at Percy's insinuation but decided silence was more appropriate considering. The four of them entered the Great Hall and when Hermione spotted Luna, walked directly to her, dragging Harry along. Luna looked up with a smile as Hermione came closer. Penelope looked at the diminutive little blonde, "You see! Safe and sound, just as I said she would be." Hermione looked at Penelope quizzically, hearing her words to Luna. Penelope explained, "Our Little Lady Lovegood was worried about you and Harry because you had apparently promised her a quiet dinner tonight."

Hermione looked at Luna and her eyes softened as she looked at the waif before her, "Mon petit lune de miel," she said, cupping Luna's cheek in her hand, "you need never worry when I am with Harry," and kissed her on the cheek. Luna stood and hugged the older girl, then hugged Harry. Hermione took one of Luna's hands, "Now then. About that quiet dinner. Gallmonger," Hermione called out.

The house elf appeared, "Would Miss Hermione like to have dinner now with Lady Luna and Lord Harry?" he asked.

"I would, please, Gallmonger," Hermione said with a smile.

Gallmonger took hold of the girls' joined hands and Harry's hand and popped the three of them away to the Founders' Quarters.

Padma looked heartbroken, which Penelope caught on to right away. "Whatever is the matter, Padma?" she whispered across the table in concern.

Padma looked around and leaned forward, directing he whispered words to Penelope, "I just wish I could make friends with them. Every time I get up my courage to introduce myself, something seems to come up or things go awry. Like at lunch today when, instead of being able to introduce myself, I sprayed them with pumpkin juice and then I think I offended them by casting a cleaning charm on them," she said, clearly close to tears.

Penelope looked around and noticed most of the girls who normally made up Padma's clique were trying to hear what she was saying but were unable to do so. "Why don't you meet me in my room tonight after dinner and we can talk about it then," she said, slightly gesturing at everyone around them.

Padma nodded and a small smile of relief appeared on her face. _Maybe there is hope,_ she thought. Dinner became a more pleasant affair for her as she now had something to look forward to – an introduction to her Secret Goddess.

-oOoOo-

Padma knocked timidly on Penelope's door. She stood there for a few moments before the door opened and Penelope invited her in and closed the door behind her. Penelope then cast a locking charm on the door and privacy spells on the walls, floor and ceiling. Seeing the look of surprise on Padma's face, Penelope explained, "Remember the floor and ceiling are places people might choose to listen in on what should be private conversations, and always cast a locking charm on the door when you don't want to be disturbed. It won't keep out a determined person, but will give you a few moments to clean up whatever it was you were doing." She then looked at the younger girl who looked as if she felt completely out of her element. "What has you so concerned, Padma?" Penelope asked, sitting down on her bed. Padma looked embarrassed. Penelope looked the younger girl over more closely, noting the tension at the outer corners of her eyes, the tightening of the lips and the sheen of perspiration on her upper lip. "You have a crush on Harry, is that it?" she asked.

"No!" Padma said more loudly than she had intended. Penelope watched her closely. No signs of deception. No finger fidgeting. No flaring of the eyes. No dilation of the pupils. _Not Harry then_, she thought.

"Well that is likely best. I think he is already spoken for," Penelope stated matter-of-factly. Padma clenched her fists momentarily at this statement. Then Penelope understood and shook her head slightly. "It's Hermione, isn't it?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"It's not like that!" Padma said defensively, nearly in tears.

Penelope looked around the room, then her eyes rested on Padma. "Do you see anyone else here? It's just you and me, Padma."

Padma looked around and felt trapped. She then looked at her shoes, took a deep breath and slowly let it out, counting to three as she did so. She looked up at Penelope. "She's so smart and so pretty and I want to be like her," she said, first one, then the other eye releasing a tear to run down her cheeks.

Penelope patted the bed beside her, inviting Padma to sit. Padma shuffled over to the bed and sat next to Penelope. Penelope wrapped an arm around Padma and pulled her in closer. "You and just about every girl in Ravenclaw from fifth year on down does too," Penelope said.

Padma pulled back and looked at the older girl in disbelief. Penelope pulled her back into a one-armed hug. "I have watched as nearly every girl is glued to anything Hermione or Luna says. I don't know if it is out of jealousy over their attachment to Harry, wanting to be just like Hermione, wanting to be in Hermione's shoes or, as I suspect in some cases, merely wanting Hermione." Penelope watched Padma's physical reactions to her words. "In your case, it appears to be a bit of them all except jealousy," Penelope said.

Padma nodded but said nothing, still trying to fight the slow but steady stream of tears.

"Padma, look at me a moment," Penelope commanded. Padma looked up at her. "Are you afraid I am going to blather this out to all of Ravenclaw or something?" Padma shook her head, but her eyes and her lips told a different story. "You need to learn to lie better, Padma. Your face gives you away," Penelope said. Padma looked down at the floor once more. "I won't be telling your secrets, Padma. I am a prefect, I am four years ahead of you, but most of all, if you would have me, I want to be your friend. And friends don't tell each others' secrets," Penelope said, the conviction of her words clear in her voice.

"I've just never had anyone but Parvati to really confide in before and I wasn't courageous enough to get in the same house as my own twin," Padma said, but this time the tears fell in sobbing streams.

_So THIS is really the issue,_ Penelope thought, pulling the young girl into a comforting hug. "Did you ever consider your twin might feel just as upset that she wasn't smart enough to be in the same house as you?" Penelope asked, probing further into the issue.

"Parvati and I barely... said ten words... to one another... this past summer. She kept... going off... with her friend... Lavender... from Gryffindor. I swear... those two spent... more time talking... last summer... than the two of us... have spoken... to one another... all of our lives," Padma sobbed.

"Shhhhh. It's okay to cry. Just let it out," Penelope said, kissing the top of Padma's head. She held Padma for some time, rocking her back and forth. As she rocked her and whispered words of comfort, Padma's sobs became mere crying, then Penelope noted the change in breathing. Padma had cried herself to sleep. "Well if this isn't how rumours get started," Penelope said with a small smile, looking at the sleeping girl in her arms. She gently stood and lay Padma down on her bed, removed Padma's shoes and socks and transfigured Padma's robes into a night shirt. She then covered her with the sheet and blanket and, once more, kissed the now-sleeping girl on the temple. "Sweet dreams, Little Sister," she said. She then stepped out of her room and called a house elf, explaining she would need another mattress and bedding brought to her room. In almost no time, the elf had set up a second mattress with bedding the same size as, and adjacent to, the one Penelope had surrendered to Padma. Penelope brushed her teeth, then her hair and got dressed for bed. With one last look at the younger Ravenclaw, Penelope closed her eyes, allowing sleep to take her.

-oOoOo-

Neville was staring up at the ceiling, unable to sleep. He had wanted to spend some time alone talking with Susan that evening but hadn't known how to articulate it without either hurting Hannah's feelings or hurting Susan's feelings. He had been feeling frustrated and had expressed his frustrations to someone who seemed a bit more worldly: Justin Fitch-Fletchley. Justin, being the quintessential Hufflepuff, explained that perhaps Susan and Hannah both liked Neville and both wanted the same thing. This line of thought seemed utterly ludicrous to Neville as he couldn't understand how one girl, much less two, could be interested in him. Had it not been for the intrusion of his Head of House, Professor McGonagall, coming over and asking him to join her in the Headmaster's office, he would have loudly refuted Justin's inconceivable conclusion.

-o-

"Mr. Longbottom, so good of you to come," Dumbledore had said in greeting. Neville couldn't help but notice that, in addition to himself, Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape was also present.

"Have I done something wrong, Headmaster?" Neville asked in concern, some of his insecurity coming back to him under the circumstances.

"No. Not at all, Mr. Longbottom," the Headmaster said, then a look of sadness washed over Dumbledore and it dawned on Neville just how old the Headmaster felt. "It is, in fact, I, who has done something wrong, Mr. Longbottom. And it is up to me to correct it," Dumbledore said.

"What is it, Sir?" Neville asked steadily, a voice in his head reminding him that he was Longbottom of Longbottom and that here, in these walls, he held dominion.

"My Boy... No. That isn't right. My Lord. When you were but a babe, I warned your parents and the parents of a boy who should rightfully have been your brother in all but name about how powerful I sensed the two of you to be. I warned those four loving people that, if allowed to grow unchecked, your magic would grow beyond all known control before you could walk. They took my counsel and allowed me to bind their children's magic," Dumbledore explained sadly, remembering all too well the funerals of James and Lily, and only last year, those of Frank and Alice.

Neville gasped, starting as his was not alone, for McGonagall gasped as well. McGonagall turned to Snape, "You knew?" she asked, her voice just above a whisper, but with a concealed, lethal edge to it.

"I had no proof. I merely suspected as much. Rarely does a boy with so little magic come from the loins of two powerful wielders," Severus answered.

Minerva looked back at Albus, "Any others?" she hissed at him.

Albus looked up at Minerva, shaken from his memories of sadder days by her tone. "Minerva, I am trying to keep my promise to you. Please do not make this worse. And no. Only Neville and Harry," he said. A kindly smile came to his face and he looked at Neville, as if seeing him there for the first time. "Now, My Lord. I would not wish you the shock that a sudden release of the bindings would cause, so I would like to cast a charm which will slowly bleed off the binding over the next month, rather than have you unconscious for the next several days. Does that sound like a good plan to you?" he asked in a grandfatherly tone.

Neville stood there, silent for the moment. Inside, however, was a completely different universe of rage, anger and frustration. _You meddling, irritating, geriatric bastard! I will carve your lungs out with my trowel! I will fill your carcass with maggoty meat and let vultures eat your eyes out! By what right did you do this to me? To Harry? We would have been brothers, he and I! I should have had friends before now! Your bloody war has taken from me and mine far too much already and now THIS? Only for my sake and my brother's sake shall I spare thee, Old Man. I shall, like my fathers before me, rise above your ilk and be merciful for as long as need be._ Neville noted the Headmaster's now-pale complexion as he stared into Neville's eyes. "That would be acceptable, Headmaster," Neville said quietly.

It took a moment for Dumbledore to recover from hearing Neville's thoughts. "Thank you, Lord Longbottom," he said and then cast the spell.

Neville felt the magic wash over him. Although slight, it tore at him. Burning something close to his centre. It smouldered within him, as his anger smouldered for the man in front of him. He was brought back to the here and now by the Headmaster speaking again.

Dumbledore looked at Neville's robes where his wand holster should be, "Lord Longbottom, though I know you loved your parents dearly, it will harm your magic should you continue using an unmatched wand. Set aside your father's wand and take up a focus for your magic which is more attuned to you. If you would like, please contact your Grandmother and have her take you to Diagon Alley this weekend to acquire for you a wand which matches your great power." Neville noticed Dumbledore seemed a bit drained by tonight.

"I shall consider your words, Sir. Now. It is late and I would like to spend the few minutes until curfew with people I consider my friends," Neville said.

Minerva was about to escort Neville out when Severus spoke up. "Professor McGonagall, would you be so kind as to see the Headmaster to his quarters? He looks in need of some rest. With your permission, I shall accompany Lord Longbottom back to the Great Hall."

Minerva looked at Severus, then looked at Neville, who nodded, then at the Headmaster. "Thank you, Professor Snape. I would like to ensure he gets some rest," she said.

Severus motioned to Neville towards the office door, "After you, My Lord," Severus said.

"Thank you, Potions Master," Neville said and exited the office, Severus on his heels.

They walked down the spiral staircase from the Headmaster's office in silence, only the clicking of their heels upon the stone making any sound. Once they reached the bottom, Neville walked towards the Great Hall. He stopped in the anteroom sensing Severus wanted to speak to him.

"My Lord, while I was not entirely reasonable with you last year, and I have made movement towards improving our interactions, I did want to assure you I had no proof he had done as he claimed," Severus whispered quietly above the din of the Great Hall echoing into the room.

Neville looked at Severus, "I believe you, Potions Master. For two reasons. The first is rather shallow, if you will, but I see you gaining nothing by what he did," Severus nodded at this, "but a far more important factor played a part tonight. I have watched you since September of last year, and never have I known you to lie through fabrication. I believed you tonight because I believe you to be, almost to a fault, an honest man who keeps his word. My Grandmother taught me well in this, that lies and deceptions are the cornerstone of the snakes, but only when the truth was too dangerous. You, however, speak the truth to those who could be your enemies. At the time truth can be the most dangerous. Do you see yourself as that good a judge of character?" Neville asked honestly.

Severus looked at Neville, seeing the boy's eyes were fully dilated, almost inviting him across the threshold to peer into his mind. "Perhaps rather than the bravery you choose to see, my position is one of cunning and guile," he spoke softly, opening his eyes fully to let Neville know he would not enter without permission.

Neville smiled at him. "Perhaps I, too, will choose to believe that, Potions Master. For now, I bid you a peaceful night's sleep. That is something I fear I shall not have," he said and walked into the Great Hall towards Susan and Hannah.

Severus watched him from the shadows of the anteroom, speaking animatedly to the two girls. "While I do not doubt you are wrong, I do hope you sleep peacefully as well," he whispered to the young man who was much too far away to have heard, but nevertheless turned and smiled at where Severus was standing, and nodded, startling the Potions Master.

-o-

That both Susan and Hannah had kissed him goodnight on the cheeks, still he did not know what to make of the attention from both Hufflepuff girls. He was relatively certain Susan was long past the liking stage and he was somewhat surprised at himself at how readily he accepted kisses from her. She and Hannah had been giggling about something when he had walked up to them this evening after his visit with Dumbledore and then Snape, but that frightened him more at some levels than Hermione Granger pointing her wand at him. In the morning, he would send his Grandmother an owl concerning a trip to Diagon Alley, not as Master Neville Longbottom, but as Lord Longbottom.

He closed his eyes once more and cleared his mind using the exercises his Great Uncle Algernon had taught him. Finally, long after the moon had risen in the sky, sleep claimed the young Lord Longbottom.

-oOoOo-

Gallmonger stood over the three children he thought of as his personal charges. They were clearly asleep. Harry was laying on his back in the middle, Hermione was, as she tended to do in her sleep, using Harry as a body pillow and Luna was curled into Harry's side with a hand trapped between Harry and Hermione. The other elves of Hogwarts and of House Potter and House Lovegood and the other Houses beholden to them, would come in and watch over them in their sleep. Sometimes a comforting touch was needed, they could tell, to dispel an unpleasant dream. Sometimes Beltchirp, the Old One, would come and watch over them and speak softly to the other elves present of the times before, but always his focus was on The Lord of Power, The Lady of Sight and the Lady of Death. Beltchirp spoke of sacrifice, of pain, of danger the three were as yet unaware of but would be drawing them together more tightly all too quickly. Beltchirp had also warned the elves never to speak the names of power to anyone except an elf. These were secret names. Sacred names. Not for the ears of others. The elves watched for the signs Beltchirp spoke of. They had already heard rumours of the betrayer of the family. They had witnessed the seizing of the hunter and the beginnings of the crimson messenger and the death of the crow. All too soon, the elves feared, they would see the innocent struck down but not slain. This last they knew would happen three times, if the watchers were vigilant. If they failed in their tasks, they would see the death of thousands and the beginning of the end.

So they continued their vigil, night after night, day after day. They knew they were only permitted to watch as events unfolded. It was not their place to interfere with events which were preordained. And watch, they did.

-oOoOo-


	20. Birth, Living, Death, Love and Reunion

-o-AN-o-  
>Special thanks to Cheral, Claire, Alexia and texan-muggle for all of the assistance, polish, reality checks and especially for taking the time out of their busy lives to make this chapter better than when it came out of my mind and computer.<p>

Additionally, I would like to thank all of those who have taken the time to write a review, make this story a favourite or placed it on alert. I appreciate your reading a story I am enjoying writing. Blessings to you all.

This chapter contains non-graphic discussion of rape. If that's a squick, please bypass the -o-o-o- section.

It is nearly 7 in the morning and I am on my way to the airport yet again for another tediously long flight. Thirteen hours is only a bit more than half a day, but it can seem dreadfully boring without something to do. Thankfully, I can use the time to work on chapters 21 and 22.  
>-o-AN-o-<br>-oOoOo-

Secret Loves Year 2 - Chapter 20 – Birth, Living, Death, Love and Reunion

-oOoOo-

Emma Granger had awoken early again. No matter how late she went to bed, the little ones woke and began kicking one another vehemently, as that is how she thought of it. _I certainly hope they aren't like this when they come out. I'm not certain I could handle two aggressively physical infants,_ she thought as she entered the kitchen to make some tea. According to Bonnie, their friend of seven months whom they met likely only five or six weeks after Emma became pregnant, the babies were fine and would probably be a week or two premature due to them being magical twins. Emma wasn't sure she was going to make it another day as the weight of carrying two children was slowly, but surely, wearing her down. She filled the kettle and placed it on the stove to heat. She was walking to the table to get the teapot to rinse it when a strong contraction hit. She grabbed the edge of the table and stifled, as best she could, the wash of pain. The contraction eased. She caught her breath and gathered her wits. The last time she remembered a contraction that strong, her beautiful daughter, Hermione, had been born just three hours later. She took the teapot to the sink and rinsed it first with cold water, then with warm water, then with hot water and finally a second rinse of hot water to heat the teapot to the correct temperature before making the actual tea. She set the teapot on the stove and turned to get a teacup from the cupboard when the second contraction struck. This one was, if possible, even stronger than the last. She gripped the edge of the stove and was unable to entirely stifle the screech of pain.

Dan awoke to hear a cry of pain from his wife. He looked but she was not in bed. He had left his socks on and his trousers by the bed in the event they needed to rush to the hospital. Dan slid into his trousers and put his loafers on, grabbing a sweater for himself and a blanket for Emma in case they needed to rush off.

He entered the kitchen to find Emma leaning heavily on the stove and a noted her night gown, the floor beneath her and her legs were wet. She was breathing heavily and seemed in pain. "Did you spill the kettle, Love?" he asked, putting his sweater on, anticipating that was not the source of the dampness.

She smiled at him through the pain, "No, Honey Bear. My water just broke. I think we should get to Bonnie," she said with a grimace. The third contraction eased and she caught her breath as Dan reached into his pocket and pulled out the doll-sized baby bottle Bonnie had given them as an emergency portkey to St. Mungo's. He held it in his hand and, ensuring Emma also touching it, said "We're having twins!"

The felt as if they were spinning around like a top, swirling through the ether at unimaginably high speed; for two-tenths of a second. It really wouldn't have mattered as any sort of disorienting motion was going to cause Emma to regurgitate, which she did, all over the back of the robes of the man standing in front of her.

Many people were shuffling about them as Bonnie, who had clearly been asleep not one minute earlier, came out of a door and rushed over to Emma. "How far apart are the contractions?" she asked

Emma was trying to empty her stomach for the second time, so Dan answered, "about forty-five seconds," he said and paused for a moment, trying to think. Then he looked at Bonnie and said, "And her water's broken."

"Right!" Bonnie exclaimed. "Jeremy, go open her room. Michael, go have someone clean your robes, then get me the tray of potions for Emma. Dan, follow Jeremy. I shall follow you with Emma," the woman said, in a tone that afforded no arguments.

Jeremy ran down the hall, Dan close on his heels, and opened the only room on the corridor which had double doors. In the room was an immaculate four-poster bed with pristine white sheets, white carpeting and light flooding the entire room from no readily apparent source. Jeremy waved his wand and transfigured the bed into a labour couch with a back seat. "Dan?" Jeremy asked without pausing for an answer. "Let's get you into the seat here and strapped in." Dan was about to argue with Jeremy but Jeremy just looked at him. "Bonnie said that you are supposed to sit in this chair and I am supposed to strap you in and that is what we are going to do. Now sit!" Jeremy said vehemently. Dan sat.

Jeremy strapped Dan's ankles, knees, waist and chest into the chair but left his arms free. He was sitting back, slightly reclined. "What, pray tell, am I supposed to be sitting here for?" Dan asked, just as Bonnie walked in, half carrying, half dragging Emma into the room.

Jeremy helped Bonnie bring Emma towards the chair as Bonnie explained. "You are going to be the most important safety system today, Daniel Granger. You are going to hold your wife from behind, tell her how much you love and cherish her and think about nothing but those two beautiful babies she is carrying for you and you are going to ignore any insult, derogatory comment, blasphemous language and any other questionable words from your wife's mouth. You will listen carefully to everything I tell you to do or I will be the one to actually remove your bollocks with a beater's bat. Do you understand?" Bonnie asked, gently lowering Emma, via a spell, onto the labour couch. Jeremy began strapping Emma's ankles and knees apart and elevated as Bonnie wrapped Daniel's arms just above Emma's protruding belly.

Bonnie then sat on a short stool between Emma's legs. "Salazar's Beard! We got her here just in time. One of them is crowning already! Get that blanket ready, Jeremy! Michael! Where are my Godric-blessed potions?" Bonnie screamed, never taking her eyes off the top of the baby's head that was beginning to push out. "Wait for it... wait for it..." Bonnie said to Emma. As the contraction hit, Bonnie yelled, "PUSH! Daniel! Kiss her!" With a PLOOP sound, the baby's head and shoulders emerged and slipped straight into Bonnie's waiting hands. Without even casting the normal severing spell, the umbilical severed with a tiny POP and spark of magic. Bonnie wiped the baby's mouth and inverted her and tapped her on the bum. Little Cymbeline Anne Granger was crying her little heart out, but only for a moment, as Bonnie wrapped her loosely in a warm blanket. Michael took the first little bundle from her and awaited the second child of the day.

Bonnie refocused on Emma again, waving her wand over Emma for a moment. "Hold on, Emma! Don't push! I need to get his little head lined up! He is sideways," she explained loudly. Emma was in a nearly constant state of pain mixed with euphoria. Unfortunately for Dan, this made it difficult to hold her as she was screaming obscenities, which we will not repeat here, about his upbringing, the likely removal of his manhood, the probability of him ever being allowed to touch her THERE again and other, more unwelcome than not, language unbecoming the beautiful, loving woman Dan knew Emma usually was. He was intelligent enough to not comment back.

While Dan was focused on not listening to Emma and instead expressing his undying gratitude for providing him with two new additions to the family, Bonnie was forearm deep, turning the baby and straightening him up for his trip outside into the world. Once she got him straightened and carefully removed her hand, he seemed ready, willing and able to leap out. Another contraction hit. "Wait! Emma! Wait!" Bonnie shouted.

Emma was gripping the handles of the labour couch and blowing her breath out of her mouth as Dan coached her. "Blow. Pause. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Pause. Blow. Pause. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Pause," he repeated for each breath she took.

Bonnie was watching the little boy. Just as his head crowned, another contraction slammed into Emma. "PUSH! PUSH! PUSH!" Bonnie called out.

Emma held her breath. Her world seemed to shrink down to a tiny point of pain and light and she knew if she squeezed hard this time, it would be the last time she would need to do it. She knew not where the hysterical strength came from, but she pushed. The weight of Dan's arms on her still-swollen abdomen was the extra power she needed.

Bonnie barely reacted in time to catch the little boy as he squirted out. He was slightly smaller than his big sister. Again, no spell was needed. The umbilical cord severed with a small brightly-flashing pop of magic. While Bonnie was somewhat surprised, she went about her responsibilities and wiped the little boy's mouth, inverted him and tapped him on the bum. Little James Michael Granger had been born. Bonnie bundled him up in his own warm blanket and handed him to Michael. Bonnie noticed that Emma's nearly constant incoherent yelling had stopped.

"Okay," Bonnie called out, "the hard part is over. This part should be easy, Emma. Just need you to give me a couple of small pushes." Another contraction came on. "Okay, Emma. Push!" Bonnie shouted. When there was no push, Bonnie shouted again. "PUSH!"

Jeremy looked over and saw that Dan was crying and gently slapping Emma's face and mewling, "Please Baby. Wake up."

"BONNIE!" Jeremy shouted. Bonnie stood and looked at Emma. She could see Emma was still breathing. She felt for a pulse. It was weak and fast. Too fast.

Bonnie waved her wand back and forth four times and cast a spell Jeremy had never actually seen cast before. "Fibrillata!" she shouted. An enormous, visible pulse of magic left Bonnie's body and struck Emma. Emma's body jerked, as if she had been connected to the mains for a moment. A clearly weakened Bonnie felt her pulse again. It was still fast, but stronger. "Enervate!" she shouted, whipping her wand downwards towards Emma.

Emma's eyes fluttered open for a moment. Then opened wide. "Emma!" Bonnie shouted at her. She started at the name. "One more tiny push is all we need, Honey. Come on now. Stay with me!" Bonnie said, waiting to see a reaction from Emma. Emma nodded at her. Dan blew out a laugh of relief as the tears, which had been running down his cheeks, flew off in a mist.

Bonnie sat back on her stool and gently reached in to ensure the placenta, or more likely both placentae were detached and ready to come out. They had both mostly separated. Another contraction came on and pushed Bonnie's hand out. "PUSH!" she shouted.

Emma pushed as much as she could, which wasn't much. Even with Dan's arms wrapped around her waist again, it was, at best, half as powerful as her weakest push of the morning. Thankfully, it was enough.

The two placentae pushed out. Bonnie placed these on a gold tray Jeremy was holding for her. He took this out of the room.

Bonnie began massaging Emma's abdomen and nether regions, whispering spells she had learned only a month ago from a midwife from Diagon Alley. Thankfully, they didn't require much power as she had exhausted most of her core into that one spell to save Emma. Even Bonnie was surprised at how well Emma's body was responding to the massage and the magic. The contractions were almost nothing now and she was slowly closing to a nearly-normal diameter.

"I think Mum and Dad should see their little ones now, Michael," Bonnie said tiredly.

Michael carried the two bundles over so that Dan and Emma could see them. While most people unfamiliar with a newborn baby's appearance would say they were hideous, Dan and Emma could only see the two beautiful babies their love had made together. Both of them were crying. Bonnie unstrapped Emma's feet first, then her calves and finally one thigh, slowly lowering Emma's left and then right leg down.

Jeremy came back in the room and unstrapped Dan's ankles, then his knees. "Dan, if you could lift her up, I will get you completely unstrapped," Jeremy said.

Dan gingerly put pressure on Emma's shoulders and gently lifted her enough that Jeremy could loosen and then remove the straps. Dan then gently lowered her back down and wrapped his arms just under Emma's breasts, providing them with some support.

Bonnie moved to stand beside Emma, a potion vial in each hand. "You frightened us, Emma. It was quite a scare," she said. Emma was about to apologise, Bonnie could tell, but interrupted her before she got started. "There is nothing to apologise for. It happens sometimes, which is one of the reasons you worked so hard with me to prepare for today. Without that spell, we might have lost you. Now I want you to take this potion first," Bonnie said, handing Dan a potion for him to steady as Emma drank it.

Having discussed them with Hermione in the past, Emma was actually dreading drinking the potion, expecting it to taste like and be the consistency of sludge. Instead, it was almost like drinking a smoothie made from raspberries, cherries and nutmeg. "That was actually pleasant to drink," Emma said, her surprise clear in her voice.

Bonnie smiled down at her and handed Dan the second one. "Bottoms up!" Bonnie said, causing the sought-after smiles from the two exhausted Grangers.

Emma was pleased, once more, with the banana and strawberry flavoured potion. She drank it and handed Bonnie the empty potion vial.

"Okay. We just need to stay awake a bit longer to check to see how you are responding to the potions and the magic we used during the birthing and post-partum. Once we see how that has gone, I will cast a couple of monitoring charms on you that will keep us notified in the event you hiccough too often in your sleep," Bonnie said with a wink at the end and a smile.

Emma just nodded and closed her eyes for a moment, but Bonnie kept prodding her to keep her awake. Bonnie was concerned Emma had gone into atrial fibrillation just after the birthing of James. They would be watching her around the clock for the next week. Bonnie had taken the time to teach Jeremy, Michael, Benjamin and Sydney the Fibrillata spell in the event she was asleep or drained if it needed to be used again. Bonnie engaged Emma and Dan in conversation about little things they knew about Hermione. Dan caught on that Bonnie was trying to keep Emma awake long enough for the potions to take effect. Emma smiled wanly as she talked about Hermione's recent life-changing events.

Emma looked up at Bonnie, "You know. I keep forgetting to talk to you about this and I cannot think of a better time. Can you please talk with Hermione, Luna and Harry about magical methods of contraception. I am sure Dan and I would be interested in the information before you talk with the children, but I would feel better if you would do that with them."

Bonnie looked slightly shocked at finding out Hermione was actually married to Harry and Luna. For a few minutes they discussed how that happened and the repercussions of it. She had been holding Emma's hand, periodically squeezing it and getting a gentle squeeze back, making sure the lulls in the conversation weren't due to Emma falling asleep.

Finally, enough time had passed and Bonnie ran her wand over Emma several times, checking to ensure nothing untoward was occurring. Satisfied that Emma, in the short term, was within the acceptable range of healthy for having just birthed twins, she had Jeremy transfigure the labour couch back into a large bed.

"Time for the two of you to get some sleep. I will check in on you when I awaken," Bonnie said with a smile, hugging Emma and Dan and giving each of them a kiss on the cheek. Both of them slept peacefully through the remainder of the morning and didn't awaken until mid-afternoon.

Bonnie had cast some diagnostic charms on Emma as she slept, but instructed the "Emma and Dan Support Team" to not share the results with Dan or Emma until after Emma was doing better. While it wasn't life-threatening, Bonnie was going to recommend Emma allow her to cast a magical contraceptive spell on Emma to prevent further pregnancies. From Bonnie's perspective, Emma needed to be strong and live for the three children she had and not take the chance of intentionally or accidentally becoming pregnant again. Bonnie, too, had grown very attached to the Granger family and losing a woman who was closer to her than her own sister had ever been would be too traumatic to consider. She thought of Dan as the older brother she'd never had. Dan and Emma had held her when she had lost her great grandmother, Minnie, a witch who had survived, full of life and love, to the ripe and happy age of one hundred and ninety-seven. Bonnie had been very close to her great grandmother, a woman of eminent practicality and wisdom, who had been one of the few remaining practitioners of both Celestial magic and Earth magic. Bonnie flashed back for a moment to Granny Minnie's advice on birthing: "Plan the birth around the crescent moon to reduce discomfort." Bonnie wasn't sure she believed it, _but Celestial magic had its influence on were species, so it was possible,_ she thought, _that it could affect pregnancy as well_.

Once Dan and Emma were awake, their infants were brought to Emma for the all-important first feeding, but before that, Bonnie had Emma drink two specially-prepared potions.

-oOoOo-

-oOo—oOo-

Jasper Tanser Hurstweil was Bonnie's favourite Potions Master, amongst other things. His father, Osiris Wilhelm Hurstweil, had developed and perfected, though Osiris would argue that, the Muridae (rat), Leporidae (rabbit) and Suidae (pig) versions of the placenta-based Effeta Occurrere Potions. These potions had been commonly used for the past fifty years to provide a birthing witch with additional energy during and for the first month after giving birth as it was developed to not have any negative effects on the baby. Each of the versions provided a different level of energy enhancement, and due to the different ingredients required, was incrementally more expensive.

Osiris and Jasper had discussed, experimented and worked to perfect the Hominidae (human) version of the Effeta Occurrere Potion. While neither of them felt the current formulation was perfect, several other Potions Masters they had entrusted the formulation with felt the work was nothing short of miraculous. In extremely rare cases, however, the witch was allergic to one or more of the ingredients and alternative formulations had proven unsuccessful.

The primary ingredient of the Hominidae potion was the placenta from the birth. When multiple births occurred, and Osiris or Jasper were available, they would use the extras to work towards improving the formulation. The important ingredients, including the mother's placenta, Unicorn hair freely-given, Boomslang venom, the tongue from a fanged puffskein, a hoof trimming from a chimaera, acromantula blood, and a fire salamander flame sack, were all terribly expensive. Considering the cost of the potion ingredients alone, the potion was hideously expensive. Taking into account the eight to ten hours of a Potions Master's time who actually had the formulation, the price simply sky-rocketed. It was not unusual for a Potions Master to charge five hundred to a thousand galleons for one placenta's worth of potion, which made no more than fifteen doses. The only limitation, unfortunately, was the potion was keyed to the birth mother and could not be used for other women. Thus, Osiris and Jasper did not consider it perfect. It was, however, the only version of the potion which worked on muggle women birthing magical children as the magic was contained within the placenta and not the imbiber of the potion.

Jasper and Osiris were working in tandem to brew the potion for Emma, at Bonnie's request. It was rare to find muggle women who were capable of bringing magical twins to fruition. It was rarer for them to be aware of the magical world and allow the use of the placentas for brewing potions.

They had both taken the Goblin formulation of general energy boosting potions as they had paid the Goblins well for the formulation. Who would ever have guessed that, while brewing, adding strawberries at the second step, raspberries at the ninth step, and rat eyes at the eleventh step would make the potion not only not repugnant, but would actually make it pleasant to drink? Apparently the Goblins.

They both set their timers and waited the thirty minutes while they stirred the potion in a clockwise vortex, by hand. When the timers ran out, they reset them and began stirring the potion in a counter-clockwise vortex for eight minutes. They continued this pattern until the potion turned from a sickly yellow/red colour to absolutely clear. They then added the Unicorn hairs and turned the fire off, allowing the potion to cool to room temperature. This was, by far, the longest step and required six thermometers, three in the potion and three in the air, to ensure the potion had cooled to the correct temperature.

The two Potions Masters drank tea and discussed the possible changes they would make for the second brewing they would undertake tomorrow in an attempt to perfect the potion. They were both looking at their personal potions diaries as well as clearly-well-used copies of "Materia Magica" and "Flamel's Comparative Lexicon of Potion Ingredients Investigated – Magical and Mundane Animals and Plants (annotated)" which was the definitive work on all known and speculative uses of animal and plant parts, sections and wholes in the entire magical world. It was over four thousand volumes and grew every month. Since the 1400's, it was a requirement of attaining a potions mastery to write one book on a plant or animal which had not already been covered by the works and contribute it to the Lexicon. Osiris, himself, had written nine separate volumes on seven species of Boomslang and two species of cobra.

Osiris was trying to find potions guilds and apothecary consortia which sold mandrakes and black mamba venom. He was hoping the parliament of owls he'd sent to the various organizations would prove fruitful. He and Jasper continued watching the potion and reading their tomes.

-oOo—oOo-

-oOoOo-

Albus sat in his quarters, staring into the fire, puffing on his pipe. He had many concerns and incidents weighing upon his mind. His secondary concern was undoing many of the poor decisions he had made in the past with the children in his care.

His primary concern was the safety of the students currently at the school. Someone or something claimed to have opened the Chamber of Secrets. The last time this had happened, a young girl had been slain. That young Harry and two of his closest friends had stumbled upon it was both a good and a bad turn of events. It was good in that Harry, Hermione and Luna were, in Albus' mind, above reproach, especially considering it had been Harry who had identified Argus was not a squib due to his familiar._ How could I have missed that all these years?_ Albus thought. _Does Harry have some means to sense his magical field?_ Albus made a mental note of determining if such a thing was possible.

Another problem firmly at his feet was Neville Longbottom. What Albus had seen in Neville's mind frightened him. Neville was an angry young man whose magic had been bound nine and a half years ago and Albus himself had done it in an effort to protect his parents. Only the fact that Neville had been visiting his Grandmother on that fateful day saved his life. Now that he had cast the binding degradation spell, he would need to watch Neville more closely. That level of anger could turn him dark very quickly and he would have power equal to Harry. Power which, in Albus' remaining years, would far outreach his own. Harry, too, would need to be watched, though it seemed the influence of the Grangers had significantly calmed Harry. _Harry would be an excellent influence on Neville, but it cannot be done manipulatively. Minerva would end me in a moment. Nothing for it but the head-on approach. Ask Neville if I can discuss it with Harry, warn Neville about the dangers of having so much anger, accept the blame he will yell about and hope for the best,_ Albus thought.

Another point to ponder was Severus' turn-about. Since the viewing of Harry's memories, Severus had not been merely less acidic in demeanour. It was almost as if he were a completely different man. Bringing a puppy into the Great Hall and letting the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw first years pet it had been, he thought, a one-time event. Having received reports from Minerva about Severus coming to her with two problem Gryffindors instead of simply letting them fail would have been unheard of last year and from Pomona about Severus telling her about one of her first years acting oddly, only to discover she was being bullied by six first years from Ravenclaw in most of her classes when Pomona had followed up. Severus had casually volunteered that had the girl being bullied been Miss Lovegood, they would be cleaning them off the walls and actually suggested introducing her to Luna so she would know not all Ravenclaws were bad. After this, Severus had actually frightened him when he announced having asked the Board of Governors for an independent auditor of his classes and offered the same to any of the other professors. That said auditor was currently sitting in on all of Severus' classes for a month. The preliminary reports from him had indicated Severus' methods of teaching had taken a sharp turn towards improvement. Albus had no idea watching Harry's memories would have such a profound impact on Severus.

Then there was Lockhart. Albus had been desperate to find someone to take over DADA, but what he had seen in his mind the other evening and what he had been thinking about doing to Miss Granger, repeatedly it seemed, was unimaginably wrong. He had thought that taking the step of professors assigning detentions to other professors to oversee, an idea brought to him this past summer by Minerva and implemented this term, had been an excellent idea. To then find out that Severus had informed all of the sixth and seventh year Slytherins to watch Lockhart closely was concerning to him. He would, however, have a discussion with Minerva to ensure all of her Lions, and especially Miss Granger, were safe. He realized he would need to do this with Filius and Pomona as well.

Last, but hardly least, was Harry. Albus had wronged the boy so severely, yet Harry had been more than magnanimous. Harry had returned his family vaults untouched, likely counter to the advice of the Goblins. He had abstained from participating in the vote of no confidence in the Wizengamot and had allowed Albus to keep his position at Hogwarts, provided he swore the oath of the position. He had to resign his position as Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards as the oath he had taken for that position conflicted with the oath of Headmaster, and the ICW tended to sit on their thumbs rather than possibly offend some powerful faction of magic users. Minerva had let him know that neither Harry nor Hermione slept in their dorms and any time they were asked about it, they both became formal and indicated it was a personal matter. Since Harry had been declared Hermione's magical guardian, there was nothing Albus could say or do about it. The same was true of Luna Lovegood. The first year Ravenclaw had never stepped into the dorms and was only rarely seen in the common room, and only then when Hermione and Harry accompanied her. She was another anomaly associated with Harry. Her father, a Founding Family Lord, for Godric's sake, had been slain by Death Eaters. She, too, was in danger of her life, but she seemed to be in the constant companionship of either Harry, Hermione or both of them when she was not surrounded by her year mates, older Ravenclaws or her Head of House. And, as Severus had indicated, anyone causing her any sort of trouble would be dealing with the force that was Harry Potter. He could still hear Argus ranting about the way Harry had plastered the walls of the DADA classroom with bits of Cornish Pixies. How he had managed it without his wand was still uncertain. None of the professors, with the exceptions of Trelawney and Lockhart, presumed it was anyone but Harry. A Priori Incantatem only resulted in a Wingardium Leviosa charm being cast. His power and ability were nothing short of astronomical. Diagnostic spells cast by Poppy at the beginning of the year showed his core was immense and still growing.

His pipe had gone out. A look of annoyance and a quick spell relit it. "Too much wool gathering and not enough planning," he said aloud. He continued thinking about the issues only he could decide upon. He finished his pipe and went to bed. His dreams were troubled and the feeling he awoke with was dread. _What would happen today?_ he thought. Not even in his worst nightmare did he imagine how poorly his day would go.

-oOoOo-

Severus was in his loose-fitting wool pants, muggle trainers and a muggle jumper. He had the hood up and was running laps around the black lake. He would occasionally reach into the pocket of the jumper and throw a crab apple at the squid as a treat. One apple per lap. Tonight he had started with five apples in each pocket and had two left. He wondered if the squid actually ate them or if it just played the game with him out of some cephalopodic sense of amusement. He smiled at the thought of the squid using them to toss at mermen who annoyed the giant creature. Tonight was not a night of mindless thought, however. He had been trying to determine how to reconcile what he now knew was an incomplete picture.

When Severus had agreed to have his dark mark removed, he actually had, at the time, no idea who Lord Gaunt actually was. He had, this past weekend, gone to the Wizengamot and looked at the Tablet of Houses. His eyes had stared at the name for more than an hour. Beneath House Gaunt had clearly read "Harry James Potter". He had sworn fealty to Harry Potter. His nemesis' son. Yet Harry had not held his oath up and paraded it about. In fact, Harry had said nothing at all about it._ How positively Slytherin of him,_ Severus thought. And it had been. While, unbeknownst to Severus, Harry had asked Hermione and Steelfist for help with writing and wording the letter and then asked Steelfist to actually write the letter as he had immaculate penmanship, Severus had been accepting of the letter, he had no idea how, or even if, he had been played so masterfully. He read the letter from 'Lord Gaunt' over and over in his head, the words burned on the surface of his mind. _Who else would have helped him write it?_ Severus asked himself, knowing Harry wasn't as flowery or as well-read a person to phrase the letter as it had been. And then inspiration struck. _The Goblins, of course. 'Anything for a price' is their motto, after all._ He continued his circuit of the lake. _Regardless of his motives, I am free from the dark mark._ He already thought he knew who the other 'freed' Death Eater was, but there was no way he could be certain without the Goblins actually telling him.

He moved on from that thought and to another: Draco. The boy was a fool, no doubt a trait his father had taught him well. His ego had far outgrown his ability and, if he stepped out of line again, Severus would step on his neck severely. That Lucius was disappointed in his son was at least some indication Draco was not as well protected as he had thought, considering Lucius had made an offer of ten galleons any time someone had to step on Draco's neck for getting out of line. Severus knew for a fact that Lucius had sent McAfee one hundred galleons and a letter of thanks for taking Draco down for publicly declaring himself a fool was rather telling of how far from grace Draco had fallen in his father's eyes. Severus wondered if Draco's openness with his contempt for Harry wouldn't get him killed some other way.

He had reached the halfway point in his lap and was now looking to the right, watching the castle out of the corner of his eye, as the lights in the windows winked out two and three at a time. _Albus and Minerva are still awake. Filius' light is still on. That is most unusual. Lockhart's light is out. If Albus would let me take care of you, you would be a crab apple tonight,_ Severus thought evilly about the DADA professor. _Not only do you take a position I have coveted, granted it was foolish of me to want that position considering all that has changed, but you prey on children. I suppose I could somehow convince one of the elder snakes to talk to Roger Davies and have him pass the details to Harry,_ he thought. He continued his run around the lake, tossing another apple to the squid, who caught it and submerged quickly, as it always did when catching the apples. He continued running. _One more lap. Another fifteen minutes of quiet contemplation,_ he mused silently, turning his thoughts to the petrification of Mrs. Norris. His thoughts ran, much like he was, in circles about the petrification. He knew of no spells or curses any student could throw that could do what was done. Since she was not dead, rigor mortis was not a possibility. He knew, without a doubt, Harry had not done it. When he had read Harry's surface thoughts, he seemed perplexed, upset, angry. No guilt and no images of having done the deed were there. When he had read Hermione's thoughts, it became all too clear. Harry had heard something and the three of them had run up the stairs to investigate. _But what was it Harry heard?_ he wondered. Severus then had to smile. True to their Gryffindor nature, rather than retreat and call in the professors, people who were trained in more powerful magics and other abilities, the three of them had charged up the stairs. _Why would Luna charge up the stairs? How is she tied into all of this? What is the connection? _Severus pondered. He cast his last apple to the squid, running his final lap. When he returned to his quarters, he wrote down his thoughts, as he always did, in his blood-bound journal. And, as usual, he had far more questions than answers.

-oOoOo-

Susan had talked with Hannah, and while Hannah had agreed to share a bed, Susan had been too embarrassed to do more than a kiss on the cheek goodnight. Tonight, with the draperies around the bed closed, Hannah had done something Susan didn't have the courage for. Susan had been prepared to give Hannah a kiss on the cheek as usual. Hannah apparently had different ideas. Instead of presenting her cheek, Hannah had cupped Susan's cheek and drew her into a brief, chaste kiss on the lips, causing Susan to blush nearly to her toes, especially when Hannah had said, "That was quite nice," and kissed her again the same way. They hadn't graduated to anything beyond a chaste kiss, but three of them in a row nearly had Susan swooning. Hannah had then smiled and lay down on the bed. When Susan, too, lay down, Hannah turned over so her back was facing Susan and scooted over so the two of them were spooning. Susan was too frightened to do anything overt, so once again, Hannah made a move. She told Susan to wrap her arm around her tummy, which Susan did. Hannah then pulled her night shirt up high enough so Susan's hand was touching bare skin. Susan was happy the lights were out, but she imagined Hannah could feel the heat from her face. Hannah had fallen asleep almost instantly, as she typically did, but Susan felt as if she was overflowing with energy. Her thoughts were running wild, both with how forward Hannah was being as well as with her fantasies of what kissing Hannah would be like once Hermione and Luna taught her how to magically hug someone. Finally feeling the energy bleed off, she nuzzled her lips into Hannah's neck and gave her a slow, gentle kiss at the nape of her neck and whispered, "I think I love you, Hannah Abbot," before closing her eyes and falling asleep.

Once her breathing fell into the slow, deep pattern of sleep, Hannah, too nervous from her earlier boldness to truly sleep, whispered softly, "I love you, too, Susan." Hannah, too, closed her eyes and let the darkness of sleep take her.

-oOoOo-

Draco couldn't sleep. His anger knew no bounds. _That little know-it-all, mudblood whore. Scarhead is probably shagging her rotten every night, promising her whatever she wants just to get in her knickers,_ Draco's thoughts coloured by what the fifth years had been speculating about Harry and Hermione's relationship._ She must enjoy it because she saved him and she keeps saving him. Maybe make her ill, somehow? Keep her from coming to class? Yes! That has distinct possibilities,_ Draco thought. _Six galleons wasted because that little bitch uses a knut's worth of cornmeal. Salazar's Spit! Now how do I get her sick? Venom is too traceable. Would have to be something simple. Something that has little chance of failing._ Draco tapped his chin in thought as he paced along the edge of the astronomy tower. He turned in his pacing and noted the solitary figure coming from the lake. He squinted in the partial moonlight and noticed the motion of the figure. _Professor Snape! What did they do to turn you against Slytherin? Against me?_ Draco thought, remembering the conversation he had early with Professor Snape concerning his status as seeker for Slytherin. Severus had told him that, were he to step out of line again, he would be indefinitely suspended from playing Quidditch and that the brooms his father had so kindly donated to the team would be locked in the Headmaster's office for the duration of his suspension. This had turned nearly the entire House against him, with only Vincent, Gregory and Pansy still loyal to him. His play in potions today had cost him dearly in terms of followers. Millicent had been seriously hurt and would have to stay in the hospital wing for two weeks. That had turned all of the girls in Slytherin, except Pansy, against him. Even Pansy had been looking somewhat hostile towards him until he had gotten it out of her that she thought he was eyeing the mudblood as a possible source of physical comfort. Once she had told him the reason, he nearly became physically ill. His reaction of nearly vomiting was genuine enough and strong enough to bury that notion once and for all. Millicent, by way of the other Slytherin girls who had visited her in the infirmary, had been far more straight-forward. If any of his antics harmed another Slytherin, the girls, led by Millicent, would ensure he had an 'accident' which would result in his leaving Hogwarts, one way or another.

He swore to himself he would not do anything to cause his father to withdraw him. _I will just have to become even more cunning to ensure my position once more rises in Slytherin House,_ he thought. He walked down from the tower and slunk his way back to the Slytherin dungeons, lost in the thoughts of planning the mudblood's illness.

-oOoOo-

Penelope awoke in the early hours of the morning to find her little friend had moved around considerably in the night. She opened her eyes the moment she awoke as she felt a weight laying across her. Padma was literally laying on top of her, her head cradled between her breasts. Padma's legs were straddled on either side of her and her night shirt had risen up to just below her developing breasts.

Penelope wrapped her arms around Padma and began gently patting one side of Padma's back while rubbing the other side of her back with the other hand. As one hand would reach the drawstring of her knickers, she would switch sides. She began softly calling Padma's name. "Padma," she cooed. She did this a few times before Padma began mumbling in her sleep.

"I don't want to get up yet, Mother," Padma said, stretching slightly.

Penelope cooed her name once more and felt Padma tense. She opened her eyes and looked up at Penelope's face, panic on her face.

"Hey there, Sleepy Head," Penelope whispered, "Don't be afraid. It's just me and I am not going to kick you out. I do need to use the loo though," she said softly.

Padma realized her position and sat up, quickly pulling her night shirt down, "I'm so sorry," Padma said as she moved off of Penelope, her blush hidden well by the low candlelight.

Penelope looked at the younger girl. She kissed Padma on the cheek and climbed out of bed. "It's okay. I will be right back and I expect you to still be here," Penelope said softly, indicating with her tone that Padma had best stay put. A few minutes later, Penelope exited the loo and motioned for Padma to use it while she was awake. Penelope waited until the younger girl came back out.

Padma looked at the two beds, then at Penelope, who had climbed back under the covers of the second bed. Clearly she had moved all the way into the next bed to be where she had awoken. "I'm sorry, Penelope. I..." Padma said, but was interrupted by Penelope.

"Padma, I am not at all upset," Penelope said, then pulled the blankets back, inviting the younger girl into her bed.

Padma looked worried, _Is she going to... to... want me to...? _Padma was thinking.

Penelope could see the fear in Padma's eyes. "Padma, to me, you are a little sister, not someone to take advantage of. Had I wanted to do that, believe me, you are a sound enough sleeper that I could have had my way with you. You clearly like to be held when you sleep, so we can spoon so I don't wake up with a cute, younger blanket again," Penelope said with an inviting smile.

Padma's smile had an embarrassed quality to it as she slid into the blankets with her back to Penelope and scooted herself back against the older girl. She felt Penelope's arm encircle her waist and kiss the back of her head as she realized what Penelope had been telling her.

"Sleep well, Little Sister," Penelope said, and to her surprise, felt Padma relax completely, melting into her embrace.

"Sleep well, Big Sister," Padma whispered, surrendering herself to both Penelope's caring embrace and the oblivion of sleep.

-oOoOo-

Harry lay awake staring at the ceiling of stars. _What danger could be present? What do I need to do to keep people safe? Who can I tell? Neville, certainly. Need to talk to Hermione to see if she thinks it safe to confide in Professor Snape, though I could tell him I am Lord Gaunt and hold him to his vassal oath. Decisions, decisions._

He had been churning on this same thought for some time, when Luna rolled over into him, kissed him on the cheek and, in a glassy-eyed stare, whispered, "Sleep, Husband. Worrying about what you cannot change will only harm you, and you need to be strong for later." She then closed her eyes and was deeply asleep once more.

Since Hermione was using him as a body pillow again, he slid his hand into the waistband of her knickers to feel her soft bum then ran it up, underneath her night shirt, to feel the smooth, tantalizing skin of her back and shoulders. His other arm was now trapped as Luna was laying across it. All he could do was run his hand over the outside of her knickers. He had a small, satisfied smile on his face as the night claimed another victim of sleep.

-oOoOo-

Neville had enough issues with getting to sleep this evening. Finally, he had climbed out of bed, entered the common room and asked the seventh year prefect, who had been snogging his fourth year girlfriend, to cast a silencing spell on Ron Weasley's bed. After hearing the heavy machinery-like sounds coming from Ron's bed, the prefect was more than happy to do so.

That had been more than an hour ago. Still, Neville could not find the rest of slumber. He had closed his eyes several times and still found himself staring up at the canopy of his bed. He could feel his core growing. The smouldering sensation had turned to a burning need within him. He picked up his father's wand from the night table and looked at it. Trying to sense what it was that felt so distant in the focus of it. _Was it the wood? The core? Both? Perhaps if I used Mother's wand instead? No. I really need to go to Ollivander's and get something that is attuned to me._ He then realized what it was that was bothering him. _Where does Harry sleep? If it truly is the Founders' Quarters, I cannot help but wonder if there is a room for me. Really only one way to find out._

Neville dressed and, once more, walked to the common room. It was now three in the morning. The seventh year boy and the fourth year girl were clearly asleep on the central couch, cuddled into one another. Neville went out the portrait and stopped in the hallway. "Crispy," Neville called.

A house elf wearing a tunic with the Longbottom coat of arms appeared before Neville. "Master Neville be calling Crispy?" she asked.

"Yes, Crispy, do you know where the Founders' Quarters are here?" Neville asked.

"Crispy not be knowing, but if it can be found, Crispy can be taking you there," she said, taking Neville's hand and snapping her fingers, causing both of them to disappear.

The two reappeared in the Founders' Quarters common room. They were suddenly surrounded by six normal-looking house elves and one taller, more human-appearing elf, who spoke to them. "Lord Longbottom and Crispy of Longbottom. I am Beltchirp of Potter. You come early into the morning. What is it you need?" the taller elf asked.

Neville stood up straight and answered, "I am the Lord of a Founding Family and I expected the Founders' Quarters to be large enough to house me as well, Beltchirp."

Beltchirp approached Neville and waved his hands around him. He stopped and said to the other elves, "He is safe. Back to the watching." The six normal elves disappeared with almost silent pops. Beltchirp then turned back to Neville and Crispy. "There is more Founders' Quarters, Lord Longbottom," Beltchirp said, taking hold of Crispy's and Neville's hands and popping them to a remarkably similar room to the one Harry, Hermione and Luna were sleeping in. "Can Crispy find where we are at?" Beltchirp asked of Crispy.

Crispy nodded excitedly, "We can finds this place!"

Neville looked at the oddly-shaped elf who spoke with excellent grammar. "How is it that you are so different from the other house elves, Beltchirp? And please call me Neville or Lord Neville or Master Neville, whichever you are most comfortable with," he said.

"Lord Neville, I am different because I am one of the first elves," Beltchirp explained.

"From the War of the Races?" Neville asked in awe.

Beltchirp looked down, a sad look on his face. "Yes, I is one. Of the original first elves, only thirty of us are left. The others are no more," he said, then looked up at Neville, "Should you need anything, or any explanation of these quarters, please call upon me and, if I am not serving my Lord or his Ladies, I shall come. For now, you should sleep," Beltchirp said, snapping his fingers.

Neville was suddenly dressed in acromantula silk pyjamas coloured red and gold with a rampant lion on the front. Another snap of Beltchirp's fingers and he was sitting up in the largest, most comfortable bed he had ever been in with Beltchirp and Crispy standing at the foot of the bed. "Thank you, Beltchirp. Thank you, Crispy. I believe I shall try to sleep now," Neville said, scooting down in the bed and resting his head on the pillow. He was asleep in moments, with a small smile on his face.

Beltchirp turned and looked at Crispy. "He is the Lord of Might. We have much to talk about," Beltchirp said, sitting down on the floor and gesturing for Crispy to do the same. The two elves talked for several hours, quietly watching over the fourth Founder.

-oOoOo-

She dreamed of drums. Huge, percussive hammers beating against the skins. Hundreds of them. Thousands of them. BOOM! Louder than thunder. Played in a course so the drumming rolled across what would soon be a bloodied battlefield. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Starting behind her and running back to the distance. Her black armour glistened in the moonlight as the drums pounded. Above the din, she could still feel her heart beating in time with his heart. BaBoom! BaBoom! BaBoom! It seemed to call to the drums, set the tempo for the march as the footfalls of tens of thousands marched forward to do battle. BaBoom! BOOM! BaBoom! BOOM! BaBoom! BOOM!

Just over the horizon, they were waiting. Those who stole children in the night, butchering the innocent for their own heady pleasures. Death Stalkers they called themselves. Tonight, they would learn the price of their hubris. Tonight, they would learn to fear. Tonight, the very earth trembled from the power of the forces they led. Tonight, they would know their lives would be shortened and that the maw of oblivion would be fed well with their souls. For tonight, the forces at her back would not stop until every last tyrant, usurper, villain and traitor was put to the sword. They need not hide, for their enemy knew they were coming. Every man and woman in their force held in their breasts a heart of steel, a will of iron and a need to be free from the horrors brought upon them by the forces they were facing. He turned to his right and looked at her then. Her husband. Her lover. Her champion. He smiled at her, resplendent in his armour. She returned the smile and nodded. He looked to his left and looked at her Sister Wife. She was dressed in her white, diaphanous gown, and she nodded, protected by her power and her husband's brother, who carried sword and shield, wand and staff. His brother's prowess the equal of their husband. His heart just as sturdy. His love for innocence just as strong.

She and her husband drew their swords as one, calling down the lights of the heavens and illuminating them with bright starlight. Her Sister Wife raised her staff, calling upon the very elements to rise up against the abomination they fought. She looked skyward, her sword held high and shouted louder than the drums, "FOR THE LIGHT!"

As one, the army behind her yelled, "LIGHT!" drowning out the drums they continued to beat.

"FOR OUR FAMILIES!" she yelled once more, tears falling in her heart for those amongst them who would not see the sun rise.

The army again, each and every man and woman, shouted themselves hoarse, "LOVE!"

Finally, she shouted the word that would define the preponderance of the day, drowning out the drums and ringing against the very heavens, "DEATH!"

Deafening even the gods, the host they had gathered shouted out as one, "DEATH!"

The hornsmen sounded the charge. As one, the flyers took to the air on their mounts, gathering the forward speed they would need to break through the lines, riding through the cold night breeze, illuminated only by the stars. The drummers and pipers remained on the ground, riding their mounts hard to keep up with the flyers.

As they drew closer, they could see their enemy only had eyes for the horse soldiers and had no comprehension of their doom coming from above and behind.

She watched as the enemy horde began a volley of spellfire at those soldiers on the ground, as the flyers turned to go around the horde and come in from behind. And they flew on, turning once more to align with the rear of the enemy. As they came in to strike at the rear, both her Husband and She held their swords in front of them, shattering the shield covering the horde as if it were nothing, the sound of breaking glass filling the enemies' ears as their magic failed.

It was slaughter unimaginable. The enemy had never considered an aerial attack. They fell as wheat before a scythe, cut down by sword and spellfire from in front and from behind. They left none alive.

In the light of dawn, with the smell of blood, death, smoke and rot in the air, she walked amongst the smouldering wreckage of the host to see her soldiers, weeping in loss. Some holding their loved ones, forgiving them their transgressions even in death. But all of her host wept and she knew not why. As she drew closer, the tearful wails she knew to be her Sister Wife filled her ears, drowning out the rising tide of tears washing down the faces of the soldiers. There, in the centre of platoons of their soldiers lay her Husband, his eyes closed, his cheeks sunken, his chest unmoving. She began screaming. "NO! NOT HARRY! PLEASE! NOT HARRY!" Echoing the wailing cries of her Sister Wife. A soldier grabbed her roughly, trying to keep her from getting near him. But she saw him, dead. "NOT HARRY!" she screamed in despair, breaking the clouds overhead to expose the stars for all to see.

-oOoOo-

Hermione awoke screaming and sobbing, "NOT HARRY!"

Harry and Luna were awake in an instant. Harry wrapped his arm around her tightly. Luna sat up so Harry could wrap her in both arms and so that she could help comfort Hermione as well. Hermione continued to sob, screaming Harry's name. Harry motioned for Luna to move back so he could reposition Hermione. He sat up and pulled her onto his lap fully, straddling him. Luna then wrapped arms around Hermione.

Beltchirp and nine other elves appeared out of nowhere, their popping sounding like silenced machine gun fire, their arms out, forming a shield around the three, looking for the danger that was not there.

Harry kept calling her name softly, "Hermione. Shhhhhhh. I'm here, Love. Luna-Love is here, Love. Wake up, My Hermione. Wake up, My Love. Tell me why you're crying. Love?" he cooed softly.

Hermione was struggling with him, trying to get away, but he held her firm. "Mione, Love, come back to me, My Love. Come back. I am here," he whispered loudly into her ear.

Hermione suddenly stopped struggling and opened her eyes, her sobbing subsiding for a moment until she realised she was being held by him. By Harry. Harry and Luna could barely understand what she was saying in her tear-choked state, "Harry... Love... Battle... Flying... Luna... You... Dead... Not supposed to die..." she sobbed.

Harry opened his eyes and looked at Luna. "Should I hug her?" he asked Luna softly.

Luna shook her head, "Not this time, Harry. She is still dreaming, I think, or nearly so."

He moved his hand and put it on the back of Hermione's head and pulled her into a kiss. She was still trying to talk, so her mouth was open. He deepened the kiss, pouring his love for her into it, and his magic took over, pulling her magic into his while his magic pushed into hers. Not a hug, but a true merging of magics. He was not watching this or consciously controlling the merging. His unconscious mind took over.

Hermione's sobbing eased. Her shoulders stopped heaving in her grief and instead her entire body melted into Harry. She relaxed her arms around Harry and twisted her head so she could get better control over the kiss.

Luna had her arms wrapped around Hermione's bare tummy and could feel the raw energies surging through her sister wife and husband. She moved one of her hands from around Hermione to touch Harry's bare skin and relaxed her own magic. She felt an inrush of magic. Nothing like she had ever felt before. This was enormous. Immense. Encompassing. She felt her own magic drawn away from her and a new magic flooding through her. Surging through her. And all of the magic was tinged with the colour of Love. Not the love for a kitten or the love of another person. This was Love, in its most primeval form. Mind-numbing, without thought or reason. This was Love with no requirements. No conditions. This love looked at all the things she felt were faults, all of her memories. All of her experiences. All of her dreams. All of her hopes. And it embraced her without remorse and without judgement. This love had no name. It just was. And it needed her, too, to bring another love home.

Hermione finally was pulled back from her dream by something more powerful. Something intangible. Something she had never felt before. She could feel her magic being invited elsewhere and it went. And as it left, the void it left behind was filled by nothing she could ever describe in any language known to man. It was an energy which encompassed her very being. And as her magic left and was replaced in its entirety by this new energy, she could still feel her magic, wrapped safely up in a warm, intoxicating, caring embrace. She felt her entire being held in the grasp of an infant whose innocence surrounded her. A love so pure that white was too tainted a colour to describe it. Brilliant didn't have the power to approach it. This was the purest Love. Untouched before now. She felt another and that, too, merged with her in the Love. Regardless of what life might bring, she knew in the very marrow of her bones that no one and nothing could ever take these two or this love from her. She drank deeply of it, letting it wash away her fears, her sense of loss, her suffering. It traveled through all the channels of her heart and mind, washing away the walls she had built in her mind, to show the beauty that lived behind those walls. They came to her and showed her the path away from the darkness that had now been illuminated. And with it, she went, rising up to the surface and taking a long, free breath of sweet air. She opened her eyes.

Harry witnessed all His Luna and His Hermione had done in their lives. Had felt in their lives. He witnessed the pain Luna carried for watching her mother die in the explosion, having tossed a cabinet between herself and Luna, saving her life. He watched as Hermione held her grandmother's hand in the last moments, not understanding why Grand-mama had to leave, and the guilt that haunted her she kept locked away in her soul at Harry coming to rescue her from the troll, the guilt she felt about what could have happened if the troll had harmed Harry. He watched as Fred and George Weasley's prank went wrong and sent the captured boggart after Luna, instead of Ron, and she watched as her worst fears were played for her over and over again as it chased her all the way from the Burrow to the Rookery. He watched as both Luna and Hermione had come searching for him after Quidditch practice and the guilt they felt at having watched him run from Sir Nicholas and not able to catch him to keep him safe. As he saw these, the flavour of each scene changed. Transformed. And he knew, it was his love for them and their love for him that was bringing about the rejuvenation of these memories. Clearing away the undeserved guilt and replacing it with the love they had been too young to understand or too hurt to accept at the time.

Harry drew back from the visions and looked at his magic. In his mindscape, his magic was afire with the melding of his magic with both Hermione's and Luna's magic. In that moment, he realised the extent of the love he had for these two girls. He opened his eyes and spoke, though he could barely hear his own words for the magic singing in his mind and in his heart. He closed his eyes once more and carefully and slowly took the amalgam of magic and released the girls' magics to flood back into them, as his magic ebbed back to him. He could see that his magic did not draw back completely and there were two tendrils which stayed mixed with their magic. He could also feel the tendrils of magic that now joined Hermione and Luna. All of them mere threads, no larger than the magic of a babe in the womb, but they were there.

Harry opened his eyes, taking a deep breath through his nose, in time with Hermione breathing in through her nose as the two of them were still locked together physically at the mouth. He gently drew back from the kiss and looked at Luna, who had her eyes closed still, two small streaks of tears down her cheeks. He didn't know how he knew, but he knew these were from tears of joy and not from sorrow. He then looked up at Hermione, whose eyes were still closed and her face had transformed to that of a beautific, smiling cherub. She, too, had two tracks of tear streaks down her cheeks, also from tears of joy.

He pulled back further and whispered, "My Loves."

Both Luna's and Hermione's eyes fluttered open and looked at Harry with smiles on their faces, as they had both heard with their ears and directly with their minds, Harry speaking.

Harry heard a chorus of "My Loves," from both Luna and Hermione. He realised they had not spoken aloud. He had heard the words directly in his mind. Then he felt it in his mind. The love they had for him. So fresh. So pure. He released his left arm from around Hermione and pulled Luna to him so they were, all three, holding onto the other two. He pulled them down to be, once more, laying in bed.

He did not need to ask to now know that Hermione was doing better. He had seen the dream she had and washed the angst from her with his love. He allowed his love for both of them to embrace them again, as their love also reached out to him and the other, expressing their love. The three of them fell asleep, wrapped in the love of the other two.

-oOoOo-

Sirius had finally tracked Remus down through the Goblins. They had been more than accommodating once he paid their fee, grumbling under his breath their motto, "Anything. For a price." After the reading of James' will, Remus had returned to the Dhaka district of Bangladesh, where he made his living as a solver of problems. Sirius caught up with him as he was just putting the finishing touches on one of the more exotic problems he had dealt with.

-o-o-o-

A rather wealthy Japanese businessman's daughter had been kidnapped for ransom. It had been two weeks before the businessman had begun calling in favours. One of the greyer lanes of power the businessman's people followed led them to Remus in Hong Kong. The kidnappers had her for four weeks before Remus found them. They were only able to keep her twelve hours once he had.

While in the kidnappers' care, she had been raped repeatedly by all of them and frequently more than one at a time. While she would survive, it would require years of psychiatric treatment to return her to anything resembling the bright young woman she had been.

Remus had always tried to keep himself emotionally detached from his jobs. After he saw what they had done to her he had become, for the first time in nine years, very angry. She was huddled in a corner, cowering from his approach, her arms, like her body, bruised and filthy, yet she held them up in front of her in some imagined means of protecting herself from the beating her tormentors gave her. The rope burns on her wrists, thighs and ankles were scabbed over, indicating she had finally stopped fighting their advances or was too weak to do so. He stunned her using the lowest power stunner he could and took her to a healer he knew, leaving the kidnappers behind, having stunned them repeatedly, but not enough to scramble their brains. Yet.

The healer took charge of her physical damage and recommended a muggleborn mind healer in Rajshahi. Sadly, the best the mind healer could do in the time allotted was obliviate the past five weeks from her mind at a conscious level. She screamed and huddled in place, her arms covering her body, every time a local male came within five metres of her. She would whimper every time she smelled ginger or cardamom. Remus left her in the care of the mind healer while he went back and finished the job.

Sirius found him standing on the centre portion of the Hardinge Bridge, having just finished breaking the kneecaps and elbow joints of the head of the kidnappers, one of the businessman's underlings who had wished to unseat his soon-to-be-former manager. Remus had cast a numbing charm on the man so he would be coherent while Remus spoke to him. "_[Hotate-san. You attempted to rise above your place and, like a proud blade of grass, are being cut.],"_ Remus said in flawless Japanese. He opened the bag he had been carrying and tossed the four human heads from the thugs who had done Hotate's dirty work. The man cringed in fear. _"[Yurishi has been completely healed from the brutality your local thug hirelings used in an attempt to break her spirit. Her spirit remains whole. You will have an opportunity to explain to your ancestors the reasons for your cowardice when you meet them]_," Remus said. He then cast a degeneration spell over the numbing magic, causing the man to whimper. _"[I would have allowed you an honourable death, had she been unharmed. Now, sadly, your parents will always wonder why you dishonoured the family, emptying their bank accounts before fleeing. Their heartache will know no bounds,]_" were Remus' final words before he kicked the man into the river below, knowing the buoyancy charm would degrade at the same rate as the numbing spell. He kicked the heads into the water as well, throwing the sack into the water, the rock in it taking it swiftly to the bottom.

"Hello, Old Friend," Sirius said, having followed Remus at a distance, expecting Remus to be startled.

"Hello, Sirius," Remus said, turning to look at his friend; a man he thought he would kill on sight had he met him any time between James' death and James' will being read.

Sirius was surprised at the lack of reaction. "Your startle reflex sucks, Remus. You didn't even jump," Sirius said, the disappointment clear on his face.

Remus smiled, "You haven't bathed in two days. You had red-curried lamb for lunch and you followed me. I couldn't hear your footfalls, but every time you stepped on a tie, I could hear the creak and the wind was from your back. I thought you weren't even trying."

The two men closed the distance and embraced in a brotherly hug. They held one another for a minute then pushed back from the embrace. "You look younger than I thought you would," Remus said.

"You look about the same, Moony," Sirius said, then looked past Remus at where he had kicked Hotate from the bridge, "business? Or pleasure?" he asked.

Remus smirked. "A bit of both. He had a bunch of thugs raping a twelve-year-old girl in a kidnap-for-ransom plot which was really a plot to break the spirit of his manager at his company. I saw the kids at the will reading and it became personal," Remus explained.

Sirius looked around, "Any loose ends we need to take care of?" he asked.

"We?" Remus asked, raising an eyebrow at his brother Marauder.

Sirius looked offended. "Yes. We. As in you and I. I want you back in England and I don't want you fretting about anything left behind here," Sirius said.

"I need to bring the girl back to her father. Why England, Sirius? Dumbledore told me to stay away from Harry. I should take care of that bit of personal business, too," Remus said, his eyes glowing red for a moment as the wolf came closer to the surface when he thought of Dumbledore.

Sirius looked deeply into his old friend's eyes. They years had not been kind to Remus and it showed in the wariness in his eyes. They never stopped moving and standing next to him made Sirius feel as if Remus was a coiled spring, ready to unwind at lightning speed. "Remus, Harry needs you," Sirius said.

Remus let out a brief laughed. Then he nodded. "Let's go. If you have nicer muggle clothes with you, you can come with me to return the man's daughter. If not, I will meet you tomorrow at the airport," Remus said.

"I do have a black muggle suit. And we won't be flying home. Airports make me nervous. I'm surprised you flew to England for the reading," Sirius said, as the two men rekindled a friendship that seemed two lifetimes and two worlds away.

Remus side-along apparated Sirius to the mind healer's house, picked up the girl and returned her to her parents. Remus explained to the man about the limitations which would need to be placed on his daughter and gave him the business card of an extremely respectful, tight-lipped muggleborn mind healer located in Tokyo. After Remus received his briefcase, he made one last comment to Yamata. "_[Take her to that healer, Yamata-san. Take her nowhere else. I will follow up with him. Taking her anywhere else would cause complications and that would displease me],"_ Remus said, looking directly into the businessman's eyes. Remus' eyes flashed red, as the wolf rose to the surface. Yamata expressed his most sincere promise to leave on the next flight towards Tokyo with his daughter. He clearly did not want to find himself causing Remus any difficulties. The two wizards left the nearly-palatial home and vanished with the merest of pops.

-o-o-o-

-oOoOo-

Sirius and Remus arrived in London two days later, both of them magically exhausted. Sirius insisted they stay at Number 21 Pyrford Road. "What happened to Number 12 Grimauld Place?" an extremely tired Remus asked.

Sirius looked at his friend in amusement. "It has taken a sharp turn downward, if you can imagine that," Sirius said. "That crazy old house elf, Kreature, is the only living thing in the house. I've kicked Albus' little group out and gave Kreature explicit orders to clean the place. I don't have high hopes. He's a bit old and cantankerous for a house elf."

"Well," Remus said, "just don't go off and kill him the way Bellatrix killed elves."

"Yes, well, she isn't much of a problem either, at the moment," Sirius explained what he had asked the Goblins to do with Bellatrix, Narcissa and Andromeda.

Three house elves greeted them as they apparated into the entryway and informed them dinner would be ready shortly. One of them popped away while the other two hovered nervously around Sirius and Remus, walking several steps behind them as Sirius led Remus towards the lavatory and bath.

"Sirius, why are these elves following us around?" Remus asked.

Sirius stopped and looked around, seeing the two elves. "Oh! Them! If I don't have some kind of company, I would go stark-raving mad all alone in this house. They give me a chance to realise someone else is here and have been told to make sure I don't lose track of time and such," Sirius explained, then looked at the two elves quickly before looking at Remus again. Sirius whispered, "I think they think it is my way of punishing them or something."

The two friends talked with one another into the early hours of morning and did not find themselves in their beds until after dawn.

They discussed many things, but they repeatedly came back to two topics: The safety of Harry and his brides and finding Peter Pettigrew. They both felt the two were related and between them, they had the contacts and resources to hunt him even in the darkest corners of the world. Little did either of them suspect the answer was much closer than they realised.

Remus slept fitfully, dreaming about finding a pink-haired girl huddled in a corner, bruised and filthy.

-oOoOo-

-o-AN-o-  
>References for your edification:<br>The idea of a husband holding his wife in his lap as the child is born came from "Contributions to Midwifery, and Diseases of Women and Children", 1858; "London Medical Gazette", Volume 34, 1844; "The Lancet", Volume 10, 1826. There is also a reference to a birthing or labour chair in "Time Enough for Love" by Robert Heinlein in the section "Valhalla to Landfall".

The inspiration for the imagery for Hermione's dream was most likely inspired by two separate films. The first inspiration is from New Line Cinema's production of J.R.R. Tolkein's "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King"; specifically "Ride of the Rohirrim at the Battle of Pelennor Fields" wherein Theodin, King of Rohan speaks to the Rohirrim and all who fought under his banner that day and then the charge, like thunder rolling over the hills, rolled through the wall of the gathered horde of Sauron's forces. I had watched these three films back-to-back and I am fairly certain that, in my mentally drained state, this scene intruded upon my writing.

The other source of inspiration was rather from an odd direction. Someone was showing me cinematic trailers from the Warcraft series of games from Blizzard Entertainment. Should you choose to go to You Tube and, if you know how to modify the URL for a video and go to IcACccMsY_8 you will see part of the inspiration for the feel of the scene, except in my mind's eye, Hermione's dream is much, much darker. If you are not a URL editor, go to You Tube and search for warcraft cinematics. You will find the one of which I write, and many others like it.  
>-o-AN-o-<p> 


	21. Something Wicked This Way Casts

-o-AN-o-  
>My apologies for the delay and brevity of this new chapter. I have read many profiles where an author will have some manufactured excuse for taking months to update a story, blaming the delay on real life. I will have all who read this know, from my perspective, writing fan fiction is just as much a part of real life as going to work or comforting a loved one. The important thing to understand is all aspects in one's life have priorities. There is no honest differentiation of real life versus whatever else there is these people seem to believe exists. While writing this and future chaptersstories is a priority, at one level of another, I do have other priorities and many of those are more important than writing fan fiction, such as insuring the cats have fresh water or that the post has been dealt with. Some of my priorities are much more important than writing fan fiction and they will be awake soon and we will go down to breakfast together.  
>So my sympathies to those people who PM'd me, essentially demanding I update this story instead of sleeping, eating, and other normal human activities.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>Thank you again to Claire for her insight and to texan-muggle for his correction of gross anatomical, grammatical and other proofing errors.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>-oOoOo-<p>

Secret Loves Year 2 - Chapter 21 –

-oOoOo-

Neville awoke in a strange bed. He looked up and saw the morning sky with the sun barely above the horizon. _How did I miss that last night? _he thought, watching as the clouds slowly moved across the sky. He tossed back the covers and heard a nearly silent pop. His wand was in his hand without even thinking. "Crispy sensed Master Neville was awake," the Longbottom elf said, looking at Neville without a hint of fear at her master pointing his wand at her.

Neville set his wand back down on the night table and turned back towards the elf. "Good morning Crispy. Do you know where the loo is?" he asked. Getting up had caused the need to be more urgent.

"Through this door, Master Neville," the little elf said, hopping up and down in front of a door just to the right of a window overlooking Hogsmeade.

Neville opened the door and saw a bath as opulent as the bath in the master suite of Longbottom Manor. The room was easily thirty metres deep and twenty metres wide. Along the left wall were showers, along the right wall were dressing tables styled for both men and women and there were a series of doors situated between the dressing tables. Taking up the entire centre of the room was a walk-in bath. Seeing no obvious facility, Neville entered and opened one of the doors, looked inside and sighed in relief. He took care of his most pressing need and decided a bath was in order. He undressed and walked into the bath. The water was slightly warmer than blood as he tried to recline in the bath. It, like the bath in his manor, was spelled to allow a bather to more easily float in the water and to always roll someone face up in the event they fell asleep in the bath. He lay there, thinking about all the recent events. First and foremost in his mind was Susan. _What is it she sees in me? Why does she like me so much? _Neville thought, not having a strong self-image. He then thought about his most recent conversation with the heir to the Bones family concerning her friend Hannah. He knew they had been friends since they were little girls, but it seemed odd that Susan would think Neville would be jealous of Hannah and had expressed her concerns so vehemently, intermingled with some of the most intense kisses he had ever even read about. A small smile formed on his face at the memory of the kissing.

The smile soon faded as he began thinking of the present he could have had if it hadn't been for Dumbledore. He could still feel the smouldering sensation as the bindings burned off his core, allowing it to grow larger each day. _That meddlesome old fool!_ he raged in his mind, growling audibly. _What in the seven sisters was he thinking? What gave him the right?_ Neville opened his eyes, his anger reaching levels he had never known before. He stood and turned as he heard a voice call his name.

"Good morning, Neville. I didn't expect I'd find you here," Harry said.

Neville was relieved Harry was by himself. "Good morning, Harry. I asked my elf to take me to the Founders' Quarters as well. I couldn't tolerate Ron's snoring or the smell of his rat's cage any longer. Besides, I was thinking that, if there was anyone I would want to dorm with, it would be the boy I was supposed to be a brother to growing up and that I deserved the opportunity to also sleep in the Founders' Quarters," Neville said, his voice still tinged by his anger.

Harry looked at Neville in concern. "Nev, did I do something to offend you? You seem angry," he said, getting his concerns out into the open.

Neville's eyes flared just before he hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Harry. I am not angry with you," he said then looked up at Harry, "I've just found out yesterday that the Headmaster bound my magic when I was a babe. He cast a degeneration spell on it last night to slowly remove it over the next month. It's just... I could really use a brother to talk to," Neville said, the anger replaced by sadness.

"There are times when I could use a brother to talk to as well, Nev. The girls are still asleep this morning, so you're in luck!" Harry exclaimed, walking into the bath and turning on one of the spigots, releasing a layer of bubbles out onto the surface of the pool.

"I see you've used this before," Neville said with a smile.

"Yeah. The girls love the bath," Harry said, then looked up at Neville who was reclining once more, looking up at the morning sky.

"That's one of the things I wanted someone to talk to about. Susan..." Neville began, but paused, not knowing what to say.

"Likes you, Nev. A lot from what Hermione and Luna tell me," Harry said.

"Really?" Neville asked, his voice cracking. He then frowned, "Why does she like me, Harry? Did they say?"

Harry looked over at Neville, who was staring up at the enchanted ceiling. "Nev, what's not to like? You're smart, you're courageous and you're a nice person," Harry said.

Neville turned his head towards Harry. "Courageous. That's a laugh. I stuttered telling you and Hermione to not leave and cost us more points," Neville said.

"You faced down Hermione, Neville. Not even Lockhart was able to do that in Flourish and Blotts this summer. Granted, she petrified you, but that's Hermione. So definitely courageous. Your skill in herbology far exceeds my own and Susan seems to like you enough to have given you that kiss on the train," Harry explained, a small smile on his face thinking about Susan's peppermint kiss he received.

Neville smiled, then broached a subject he was curious about, "Harry, I know you're normally a very private person, but I wanted you to know I am truly happy for you, Hermione and Luna."

"Thank you, Neville. Coming from you, it means a lot to me," Harry said.

"Harry?" Neville asked tentatively.

"Yes, Neville?"

"You're not still upset with me trying to keep you from leaving the common room last year, are you?" Neville asked, a look of dejection on his face.

Harry looked over at Neville. "Neville, if anyone had a right to be upset, it would be you. I was never upset with you about that. It was one of the bravest things I've seen. You stood up to not one, but two of your house mates and you were in the right. I am proud to call you a friend, Neville," Harry said and reached out his hand.

At this point, Neville had an embarrassed smile as he reached over to shake Harry's hand. "I was only upset for a few seconds. If anything, I was relieved when Hermione released me from the petrification. She really is a special person, Harry. As far as bravery goes, I was more afraid of losing more house points than I was of you and Hermione," Neville responded while shaking Harry's hand. "That night, Hermione taught me something: Nothing is scarier than a determined Hermione Granger!" Neville exclaimed and then laughed.

Harry, too, was laughing. "Speaking of determined Hermione Grangers..." Harry began before Neville cut him off.

"You mean there's more than one of her?" Neville asked laughingly.

"Not that I know of. Just mine...er...I mean just the one," Harry said, first in amusement then in embarrassment.

"Oh, I'd say she's yours, Harry," Neville said.

"Well, both she and Luna are pretty special to me," Harry said, lost in thought for a moment. "Nev?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Harry?" Neville asked in response, unsure of what Harry was going to ask.

"Are you comfortable with Susan getting kissing lessons from Luna and Hermione?" Harry asked, hoping he didn't just upset Neville.

Neville spat water out, having tried to stand in surprise and instead slipped on the bottom of the bath, his head going under water. "What? Why would she need lessons? She's already a great kisser!" Neville exclaimed, then the realisation of his saying that aloud caused him to blush.

Harry looked at Neville, feeling the need to explain. "She apparently wants to be as good as Hermione and Luna. And let me tell you, Nev, having gotten a sample of Susan's kiss on the train, while she is good, a kiss from Hermione or Luna doesn't wear off for a week," Harry said, a wide smile on his face.

"As long as I am the recipient of the fruits of those lessons, I don't mind at all," Neville said, then began laughing. Harry laughed as well.

After a few more minutes of lazing about in the bath, Harry realised he should check on the girls. "I should go, Nev. I need to check in on Hermione and Luna, grab breakfast then get ready for the Slytherin match today. I hope to see you at breakfast," Harry said, exiting the bath and going to one of the showers to rinse off.

"I should likely go down and see if Susan is in the Great Hall," Neville said. "Oh, and Harry? Thanks for the chat," Neville said.

"Any time, Neville. Any time," Harry said, drying himself off and wrapping the towel around his waist.

Once Harry left, Neville rinsed off in the shower and exited the bath.

He found the door on the other side of the window and entered the closet. He dressed and then looked at the wands and staves lining the opposite wall from the robes.

He remembered something his Great Uncle Algernon had told him when he was nine about wands and staves. The words echoed in his mind, "If ever the opportunity comes to test wands or staves from a trusted source, hold your hand over them and see if one feels right," meaning at a reputable shop selling focusing devices. He closed his eyes and ran his hand an arms-length away from the rack of wands. As his hand reached the left end of the rack, a wand leapt off the rack, striking his palm. In reflex, Neville closed his hand and felt, for the first time in his life, magically powerful. He opened his eyes in surprise and looked at the nearly black, tightly-grained wand in his hand. The wand felt like an extension of his own hand. As if it was some long-lost part of him that was missing and had been found again. He knew, in that moment, even more so then when Dumbledore had spoken of having bound his magic, that he was no squib. He slid the wand into his wand holster and tried drawing it quickly. The wand seemed to appear in his hand without even thinking about it. The smile upon his face had a distinctly feral quality to it.

-oOoOo-

At breakfast, Luna once more attempted to engage Ginny in conversation, hoping she could rekindle the friendship she remembered with the red-headed girl. Although it had been a week since Mrs. Norris had been petrified, it was still the talk of the school. Ginny seemed especially affected by Mrs Norris' state, tears coming unbidden to her eyes as Colin Creevy loudly spoke about the cat's petrification. Luna, seeing Ginny upset, pulled her into a hug, or tried to. Ginny tore free from Luna, grabbed her book bag and ran from the Great Hall. Luna was devastated. She turned and held on to Harry as she cried. Harry wrapped his arm around her, having witnessed the entire interaction, and spoke soothingly to her. He, too, did not understand Ginny's standoffishness to Luna. He had little time to think about the situation as it was more important to comfort Luna than to contemplate Ginny's actions.

The three of them finished breakfast and, it being a Saturday and the first Quidditch game of the year was not due to be played for another three hours, Harry took the girls on a walk around the lake. He had contemplated inviting Neville along as well, but saw him happily sitting between Susan and Hannah at the Hufflepuff table.

Harry and Hermione specifically avoided the subject of Ginny in their conversation with Luna. Instead, they talked about and experimented with their new attachment to one another. They discovered they could not only talk to one another, but could also project images. They experimented with projecting feelings across the connection and found they could sense, with a high level of accuracy, what the other two were feeling. As they began walking back towards the castle, Luna and Hermione could feel the beginning of Harry's pre-game jitters. When they got back to the castle, the girls kissed Harry, letting him know they thought he was the best seeker in the school.

-oOoOo-

Harry, Hermione and Luna had stopped by the Great Hall to walk to the pitch with Neville, Susan and Hannah, but Neville and the girls were not in the Great Hall. "Perhaps they've already gone down," Hermione speculated.

"Well, we should go so I can get changed," Harry said, taking the two girls by the hand and walking down to the Quidditch Stadium. Harry slowed his pace when he noticed who was on the path ahead of them.

Gilderoy Lockhart was walking down to the stadium with three fourth-year girls. The girls were blushing, giggling and whispering to one another. Harry overheard Lockhart telling the girls in a joking fashion, "I certainly wouldn't mind all three of you serving detentions with me every evening this week."

Harry looked at Hermione then Luna. Both of them had heard this as well. Luna looked at Hermione, "We should let Professor McGonagall know of this," she said, her voice filled with concern. Hermione and Harry just nodded.

The three continued following Lockhart and the three girls at an ever-increasing distance. As one of the girls whispered something to Lockhart, he jovially responded, "Why certainly," as the girl reached up on her toes to kiss the Professor on his cheek. He put his hand on her hip, his fingertips suspiciously close to her bum to help steady her in her kiss. Hermione wanted to vomit. Harry was forced to hold his temper in check.

They continued on, Harry and Luna more certain than ever to never leave Hermione alone with Lockhart. They arrived at the Quidditch Stadium and went to the Gryffindor dressing room. The girls stayed in the anteroom as Harry dressed in his Quidditch uniform and gathered his Nimbus 2000 broom at the broom locker. He went out to the anteroom to meet up with Hermione and Luna again to find Madam Hooch talking with Lockhart. Harry noticed Lockhart stole glances at Hermione as he spoke to Madam Hooch. He apparently saw Harry as he called to him.

"Ah! Harry! You know, I used to be a seeker as well. Was asked to try out for the Nationals but preferred to dedicate my life to fighting against the Dark. If you need any help or would like some private tutoring, I can make myself available to you," he said in a sickly sweet voice, as he walked uncomfortably close to Hermione. He clasped her right shoulder with his right hand and leaned down between Luna and Hermione, drawing the older girl closer to him. "Can you imagine it! Harry getting his own private lessons on Quidditch from the famous Gilderoy Lockhart!" he exclaimed, looking first briefly at Luna then turned and looked deeply into Hermione's eyes. Lockhart mistook Hermione's fearful trembling as nervousness and ran his hand slowly down her right arm and right side, ending the one-armed embrace with his fingers trailing across the back of her robes across her bum. He stood and, with a predatory smile said, "Well, I should be going up to the faculty box. Good luck, Harry!" then he turned to Hermione and, still giving her a smile and a wink, "I will see you later, Miss Granger," and walked out.

Madam Hooch mistook Hermione's shudder of revulsion as her being infatuated with Lockhart. "He certainly is a charming man, isn't he," she said with a sigh, looking at the door Lockhart had exited through.

Harry felt what had happened to Hermione. His rage now knew no bounds. Both Hermione and Luna could feel the growing volcano in their husband. Harry put Hermione in the middle and the three of them walked to the entrance of the Gryffindor stands. Harry looked for Neville, Susan and Hannah but could not see them in the stands. Parvati and Lavender ran down the stairs, grabbed hold of Hermione and Luna, whispering furiously to them and the four girls climbed the stairs back to where they had been sitting, Hermione looking back at Harry over her shoulder, a weak smile on her face and fear in her mind. Harry couldn't tell, though, if it was over the upcoming game or over Lockhart's words.

Harry watched as they climbed to ensure they arrived unmolested. Once he saw they had sat, he turned to Roger Davies, who had walked up to him to wish him good luck. Harry spoke with a voice willed with cold, angry ice. "Roger, if you see Professor Lockhart anywhere near either My Hermione or My Luna, you are to let me know immediately. He touched Hermione today in a way he shouldn't have. If I am not nearby, you are to let Professor Snape know. Snape will listen to you."

Roger looked at Harry, listening to the seriousness of his friend. "It shall be as you ask, Harry. I won't leave her side," Roger said earnestly.

Harry briefly embraced Roger, "Thank you, Roger," Harry said in relief.

Roger was surprised at the hug and the words, "Good luck, Harry. Knock Malfoy off his broom today!" Roger whispered in exclamation and released the hug, turned and strode purposefully up to where the girls were sitting. He could feel the anger and the fear Harry had felt and would protect Harry's girls no matter what.

-oOoOo-

The players were standing in the middle of the pitch as they were introduced to the audience. For reasons which were unclear to Harry, many parents were in attendance today, as were a number of alumni, making the stands nearly full. The roar of the crowd as the Gryffindor players were introduced was louder than usual as Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw wanted to see the Slytherin team buried. Still, the Slytherin students and parents made their hisses and boos heard.

Madam Hooch was standing in the middle of the pitch with the Quidditch trunk. The trunk held the quaffle, the snitch, and two bludgers. Oliver Wood and Marcus Flint stood on either side of her.

Madam Hooch looked from one team captain to another, "I want a good, clean game here today, gentlemen. Step outside of the lines of good sportsmanship and I'll ban your players from flying for the rest of their time at Hogwarts. Now shake hands and we'll get the game started," she finished. The two boys looked at one another and simply grunted, kicking off and flying to their hoops, the rest of the players also taking to the air.

Madam Hooch waited for the two boys to reach their positions. She looked up and shouted, "Three! Two! One!" She blew her whistle, cast the opening spell on the Quidditch chest, releasing the bludgers and the snitch and threw the quaffle into the air. One of the Gryffindor chasers, Angelina Johnson, caught the quaffle and began passing it back and forth to the other two chasers. Madam Hooch kicked off herself and flew up to survey the field.

Harry flew up high, looking for the snitch. He was soon joined by his Slytherin counterpart.

"Hello, Scarhead. Are you all right there?" Draco said, flying around Harry as if to show off the speed of his new broom.

Harry had no time to retort as a black sphere of iron came from beneath him, missing him by a hair's breadth and he yanked his broom hard to the left. George Weasley, one of the two beaters, used his bat and struck the bludger a powerful blow, sending it straight for one of the Slytherin chasers. Halfway to the chaser, the bludger stopped in its arc and came straight at Harry. This time, when Harry yanked to the right, George hit it with a powerful swing, sending it towards Draco, who flinched. Before it came close to the Slytherin seeker, however, it stopped and hurtled once more at Harry.

Harry flew his broom at top speed but could hear the whistling of the bludger right next to his ear. He ducked under Fred Weasley, the other Gryffindor beater, who slammed the bludger away with the entire weight of his body behind it. Once again, the bludger veered off-course but then came rushing back at Harry.

After ten minutes of the Weasley twins guarding Harry, even Oliver could see something was wrong with the bludger and called for a time-out. The two bludgers stopped and hovered. Oliver was berating Fred and George for concentrating too much on Harry and not enough on the rest of the team.

"You two worry about the rest of the team. I can't look for or catch the snitch with you two hovering about. Let me worry about the rogue bludger. I have an idea," Harry said, anger and determination clear in his voice.

Fred and George looked at him sceptically, but accepted his decision.

Madam Hooch came over to determine the reason for the time out. "Are you ready to play again?" she asked over the jeering of the Slytherin team.

"We are," Oliver said, looking once more at his determined seeker.

The Gryffindors kicked off and the game resumed. As soon as Madam Hooch blew her whistle, the bludger came rushing at Harry.

Harry drew the heavy iron ball behind him. The ball cut the corners off every time he turned. Harry used this to his advantage. He flew a loose arc past the Slytherin keeper. The bludger cut the corner and knocked Flint off his broom as it went right through the broom handle in its mindless pursuit of Harry.

Harry then flew straight up, the bludger following him at more than twice his speed. Harry made a right angle turn, then another and headed straight back down. The bludger, being made of iron, could not quite stop instantly as it still had inertia. In far too little time it reversed its directions and came barrelling down. It was almost upon him when he caught sight of Malfoy, who was laughing at Harry. Harry made another right angle turn and headed towards Malfoy.

"Having fun out there, Scarhead? Are you looking for the snitch or learning how to dance?" the blond-haired Slytherin asked laughingly. Harry quickly ducked as he heard the bludger coming for his head. Draco was no longer laughing as the bludger scraped the left side of his head, cutting his ear open.

"Stupid Scarhead!" Draco screamed.

Just then, Harry noticed the snitch, hovering just beside Draco's right ear. So focused was he on the snitch that he did not see the bludger coming at him. It struck his right elbow. His right arm exploded in pain. His vision dimmed. He flew upwards in an attempt to get away from the bludger and get into position to get the snitch. _Must get to Malfoy,_ was his only thought. The snitch was still right next to Malfoy's ear as he started his descent at full speed. He pushed his magic harder into the broom and felt it accelerate.

Draco looked up to see Harry coming straight at him. He ducked just in time, or so he thought. Harry reached out with his left hand, holding onto his broom with only his legs, and grabbed the snitch from right next to where Draco's head had been. Had Draco not moved, Harry would likely have collided with him. Because he did move, his broom was lined up with the bludger. The bludger didn't even slow as it took the tip of the handle right off Draco's broom, causing it to go into a steep nose dive.

Harry, already in a nose dive from much higher up, leaned back on the broom, trying to get it to angle up from a straight-down descent. He was only twenty metres in the air and managed to keep hold of the snitch as his broom impacted the pitch at a thirty degree angle, hurtling Harry into a roll onto the muddy grass. He stopped and lay there, his right arm at an unnatural angle. He opened his eyes to see the bludger coming straight down towards his head. He didn't hear the spell which caused it, but the bludger suddenly exploded in the air, causing it to rain iron powder over the field. Harry's vision went grey.

Draco, too, crashed heavily into the middle of the pitch. Fortunately for Draco, his broom took the brunt of the impact, splitting into four large pieces as Draco went rolling across the muddy field. He stopped rolling and sat up. He then looked down at his left hand and noticed the long piece of shattered broom handle protruding through his hand. He promptly fainted.

Harry opened his eyes, the sounds of the people around him coming through louder. He saw a glint of teeth.

"Not you," he said sluggishly.

"Clearly delirious," Lockhart said, "Don't worry, Harry. I'll have you fixed in no time."

Harry was trying to sit up. Trying to get away. The pain lanced through his arm and his vision went to a pinpoint.

"No. Don't. Please," Harry whimpered.

"I've cast this spell a million times, Harry. Not to worry," Lockhart said as he waved his wand about then pointed it at Harry's arm. In that moment, Harry locked eyes with Lockhart, who had a malevolent smile on his face, and saw in a flash what he wanted to do with Hermione.

"NO!" Harry shouted, but it was too late. He felt as if his arm, starting from the shoulder down to the wrist, filled with water. While it had the advantage that the pain lessened, a decidedly unpleasant sensation replaced it. He could not move his arm. When he tried, he could feel the muscles contracting but the tendons had nothing to pull against.

"Yes, well. That can happen sometimes when the subject is moving too much," Lockhart said, the smile on his face widening. "At least the bones aren't broken any longer," he said, then stood and began walking away, whistling a little tune. Harry then heard him say, "Ah! Miss Granger. While I can certainly commend you trying to save your friend, I am afraid I am going to have to give you a detention tonight for destruction of school property. Meet me in my classroom after dinner."

Before Harry could say anything, Madam Pomfrey was at his side. "Stupid, stupid man. It's easy to repair broken bones and the worst to regrow them and reattach the tendons," she said, looking down at Harry. "Well, no worries, Mr. Potter. You'll be in the infirmary all night but we'll get it regrown by this time tomorrow," the mediwitch said, casting a stunner on him so he wouldn't be uncomfortable as she transported him to the infirmary. His last thought before he was stunned was how to kill Lockhart before his visions of using Hermione came to be.

-oOoOo-

Hermione was shaking with fear throughout dinner at the thought of having to be alone with Lockhart. She and Luna had waited to speak to Professor McGonagall or Professor Snape but neither were at dinner. Luna had insisted on going with her, but Hermione told Luna she was to go and find Neville and to tell him where she was going. Hermione had not wanted to place Luna in danger of being harmed by Professor Lockhart. Luna ran towards the library as Hermione walked towards the DADA classroom. She reached the door and knocked. It swung open on its own accord. "Enter," she heard Lockhart say.

She pushed the door open and saw Lockhart sitting at his desk, writing. The door slamming behind her startled her. Lockhart looked up and cast a locking spell on the door, looked back down at his desk and continued his writing. Hermione woodenly walked to the front of the room and sat at her normal desk.

"No, Miss Granger. Come up here please," Lockhart said, his voice oily and sweet.

She stood and walked up to the desk.

Without looking up, he motioned for her, "Come around the desk here," he said.

Fear gripped her, keeping her from moving.

Again, without looking up at her, he said, "Come on now. Come here."

She turned and walked around the desk. He was still in his chair, signing what appeared to be pictures of himself. He dropped one of the pictures and it fell to the floor, landing between her feet. She looked down at the postcard to see his face leering up her robes and whistling a wolf whistle. Lockhart set his quill down and turned his chair. He reached down and picked up the postcard, brushing her bare knee with his hand. He then let his gaze rise up from the floor, slowly running up her legs, the small bit of thigh below her robes, up to her developing bust and then stopped at her face. She was crying silent tears. He set the postcard on his desk and reached up with his right hand to her cheek to wipe away the tears. "Come now, Little One. There are worse things than serving a detention with me," he said. He took hold of her upper arms with his hands and slid them slowly down to her wrists and then to her waist. "I have something fun for us to do tonight that I think you will enjoy as much as I will. Tell me. Are you familiar with the three unforgivable curses?" he asked, a predatory smile coming to his face and began pulling her gently, but firmly, towards him.

There was suddenly a loud BOOM! against the door. Both Lockhart and Hermione startled by the noise, looking at the door.

BOOM! Lockhart jumped again, but Hermione let a glimmer of hope enter her mind. The door held but the mortar between the stones of the doorjamb cracked.

BOOM! Lockhart looked nervously at Hermione. "Well, I should really be going. We can postpone this detention for now, Miss Granger," he said as he exited out of the door leading to the attached office.

BOOM! The door flew inward twice its length as a cloud of dust rose. Hermione was less afraid of whatever was coming through the door than what had just left.

Hagrid came through the cloud of dust, his crossbow in his hand and a look of intense, absolute anger on his face, with Professor Snape close on his heels, his wand in his hand. He saw Hermione first while Hagrid looked around the classroom.

"Miss Granger, are you harmed at all?" Severus asked, looking into her eyes and watching what had transpired.

Hermione shook her head then began crying as Luna ran into the room. The younger girl ran straight to Hermione and pulled her into a hug. "Oh! My Hermione Love!" Luna exclaimed, holding Hermione tightly as Hermione's legs buckled, pulling both girls to the floor.

"Beltchirp! I need you!" Luna called out. As before, Beltchirp popped in, looking for danger. He saw Hagrid with his crossbow and Severus with his wand and instantly froze both of them in place with twin snaps of his fingers.

"You would DARE attack a member of House Potter?" Beltchirp yelled. The very air had begun crackling with magical discharge as the elf began gathering in magic from all around. Only the shouting of his mistress stayed his hand.

"BELTCHIRP! NO!" Luna shouted, then continued more calmly as the elf calmed, "Lord Hagrid and Professor Snape were helping me. Please release them," she said, tears beginning to run down her face as she realised Hermione was completely incoherent.

Beltchirp snapped his fingers then went down on one knee, "My Lords, I meant no disrespect. I had thought you meant harm to My Lord's Ladies," he said.

"Or, It's a'right. I'da dun ther same if'n it'd be'n me," Hagrid said, carefully releasing the tension of the crossbow's string.

Severus, however, did not fail to notice the specific language Beltchirp had used. To call Luna and Hermione "My Lord's Ladies" implied Harry was not simply friends, and not even merely betrothed to Luna and Hermione, but that Harry was, in fact married to Luna and Hermione. The implications of that were both immense and terrible. If it could be determined Lockhart intended to harm Hermione in any way, he was a dead man. It would only be a question of whether the Ministry or Harry got to him first as to how long he lived and how painlessly he would die.

Severus finally responded. "I, too, take no offence at your actions, Beltchirp of House Potter and forgive you any transgressions you felt necessary against my person," Severus said formally.

Beltchirp stood. "Thank you, My Lords. My responsibilities must always be to my direct family first," he said, explaining his actions.

Looking at Hermione and Luna sitting on the floor, with Luna holding and rocking an incoherently distraught Hermione in her arms, singing to her softly, Severus felt he needed to take control of the situation.

"Beltchirp, can you please take Lady Lovegood and Miss Granger to the Infirmary and let Madam Pomfrey know I shall be attending them shortly?" he asked, hoping the elf would listen to him.

Beltchirp nodded at Severus then looked at Luna and Hermione. Luna locked eyes with the elf for a moment and nodded, then switched her attention back to Hermione and continued her soft singing.

Beltchirp took hold of the two girls and popped them to the Infirmary.

Hagrid walked to the door which led to the office. It, too, was locked. He pulled back and rammed his shoulder into the centre of the door. BOOM! Although the door held, the mortar between the stones cracked.

"Rubeus, wait," Severus said.

"Wha' is't Professor?" Hagrid asked.

Severus smiled evilly for a moment and motioned for Hagrid to step back. Severus then cast the most powerful locking charm he knew on the door, then tied the charm into the wards of Hogwarts.

Severus, the smile still on his face, looked to Hagrid and said, "I believe he should stay in there until we have alerted the Headmaster and Lord Potter. We would not wish them to be upset with us for being precipitous."

Hagrid looked at the door, then at the Potions Master, then at the door again. Finally he turned to the Potions Master once again. "As I unnerstans it, Young 'arry'll bay'n t'e infirmary 'til t'morrow't the earliest. 'e'll likely nee' a day'r two t'e get better 'n' I would't want't' slow 'is recovery o'er this," Hagrid said, his smile mirroring Severus'.

"Let us go check on Miss Granger," Severus said, directing the half-giant to the door. As they exited the classroom, Severus waved his wand, repairing, closing and securely locking the door, also tying this locking charm into the wards of the castle.

Hagrid nodded at Severus' work then the two of them made their way to the infirmary.

-oOoOo-

Harry awoke to the smell of antiseptic and the sound of Hermione and Luna crying. He tried to sit up but remembered Madam Pomfrey had strapped his chest down to the bed to prevent him from moving his arm too much, slowing the progress of the Skele-Grow® potion. He turned his head and saw Luna softly crying as Madam Pomfrey led the two girls to the bed next to Harry's.

"What happened?" Harry demanded, his system burning through the sleeping potion he had been given due to the evident distress of his wives.

Madam Pomfrey turned and gave Harry a admonishing look. "Be still, Mister Potter, and we shall all learn of what happened. Rest easily. I will ensure these young ladies are well taken care of," she said in a comforting tone.

Hermione, however, heard Harry's voice. She looked up and saw him laying in the bed, ran around the bed and climbed in next to him, holding onto him, her sobbing renewed. He held her with his one good arm. Her sobbing was so intense, the words she spoke were completely incoherent. Harry looked over at Luna, who was also crying. "My Little Moon, what has happened?" he asked of her. Much to Madam Pomfrey's distress, Luna, too, climbed onto Harry's bed and hugged him around his knees.

Her voice had a haunted quality about it as she spoke, "He gave her a detention after dinner for destroying the bludger that was trying to kill you. I tried to go with her but she insisted I go get Neville. I couldn't find him but I found Rubeus in the hall. He went and got Professor Snape and the two of them blew the door down. I was running behind them but couldn't keep up. I think they blew the door down just in time. I felt her despair. When I cried out for Rubeus to hurry, he took a step back and I think the wall broke away. Hermione was so afraid," she said and she, too, began to sob.

"Lockhart!" Harry shouted, his eyes taking on a haunted look as he remembered what he saw in Lockhart's eyes when the professor vanished the bones in his arm.

Hagrid and Severus entered the infirmary and saw Madam Pomfrey hovering over the three of them, trying to run diagnostics on Hermione. She noticed Professor Snape enter and a look of relief washed over her.

"Thank goodness, Professor Snape. Can you help me get her into her own bed?" Poppy asked.

Severus shook his head, "I think it best the three of them remain in close proximity for as long as necessary," he said aloud, walking up next to Poppy. He then looked into her eyes and said very softly, "Please check Miss Granger for signs of sexual assault and do it quietly."

Poppy's eyes widened in shock, but she did as she was told. When she was done, she looked at Severus and shook her head. She was pleasantly surprised to see a look of relief wash over the Potion Master's face.

"Thank Salazar for that," he said softly, then looked at Hagrid. "Rubeus, if you don't mind, please watch the door. I don't want anyone coming in here who might unnecessarily disturb these three," Severus said.

Hagrid nodded at Severus, trying to calm the rage boiling beneath the surface. Severus had never seen Hagrid angry before. Hopefully the sight of an enraged half-giant would be enough to keep others away. Severus then looked at Harry. "Mr. Potter, Miss Lovegood is to be commended for her quick thinking and resourcefulness for preventing what could have been a terrible tragedy, that of Miss Granger being irrevocably harmed. Please do not let them leave your side tonight. I will want to speak with Miss Granger before I leave here this evening." He then took Poppy by the elbow and steered her to her office. He explained, first and foremost, that he trusted Poppy in ways he trusted few others, much to her surprise. He then related to her what he knew to have transpired this evening, his suspicions and his need to use Legilimency on Hermione. He explained he would ask Hermione's permission first, which also surprised Poppy. He also asked her to give Hermione and Luna dreamless sleep potions and that he was having Hagrid guard the entrance to the infirmary all night and to please provide Hagrid with a Pepper-Up potion. Poppy agreed with all of this and gathered the necessary potions.

The two of them exited Poppy's office just as Dumbledore was entering the infirmary. Albus looked at the two girls laying in Harry's bed and waved his wand over the bed, expanding it to four times its normal size.

"Thank you, Headmaster," Harry said quietly in appreciation.

Albus smiled sadly and nodded, "I need to speak with Potions Master Snape for a few moments, Lord Potter, but I need to speak to the three of you before Poppy administers any potions to the Ladies."

Harry's eyes widened. He nodded, a wave of concern washing over him at Albus' reference to Hermione and Luna.

Albus walked over to confer with Severus and Poppy. "How are the young ladies, Poppy?" Albus asked.

Poppy looked over at the two girls laying with Harry. "Miss Lovegood seems to be mentally distraught over what her friend has been through," she said. At the word "friend", Albus looked at Severus to see his eyes narrow for a moment, confirming his earlier findings at the Ministry. Poppy continued. "Miss Granger is hysterical. It would appear, based on hearsay at present, that a member of the faculty was prepared to sexually assault her and Hagrid and Professor Snape intruded upon them just in time to prevent it."

Albus looked at Severus, "Have you..." he began asking.

Severus shook his head, "Not yet," he began quietly, "as I am waiting for her to become coherent once more."

Albus nodded, "Let us see what we can do to bring that about more quickly," he said and turned to face the expanded bed. He held his hand open and waved his wand over it, causing a small, silver phoenix to form perched on his palm. He whispered inaudibly to the little bird and it fire-flashed away.

Two minutes later a clearly concerned Minerva McGonagall appeared with an equally concerned Susan Bones, Hannah Abbot and a clearly upset Neville Longbottom. They spoke in a brief, whispered conversation. Albus watched as Neville began crying as Hagrid engulfed him in a hug. Susan and Hannah looked on, but Minerva came to join Albus, Severus and Poppy.

She looked to the three then turned around and looked at the trio in the bed then the trio by the door, Neville still engulfed in Hagrid's hug. It appeared Neville was holding onto Hagrid as if he was a sheltering tree in a storm. "How can so many calamitous events occur in the same day?" Minerva asked rhetorically.

Albus looked at Minerva, "I presume you are speaking of something to do with young Neville?" he asked of her.

Minerva nodded, still looking at the six children and watching as Hagrid and Neville parted their embrace. Hagrid put a hand on Neville's shoulder and went down to one knee, bowing his head then looking up again at the boy. Hagrid spoke for some time before looking over at the gathering of adults as Neville turned and was then held by Susan and Hannah.

"Minerva?" Albus prodded gently.

"Mister Longbottom's mother died today. His father is not expected to live through the night," Minerva said.

-oOoOo-


	22. Owl's Well That Ends Well

-o-AN-o-  
>Thank you for all of the kind reviews. This chapter is particularly late and for that I apologise. I had wanted to get Secret Loves Year 1 Chapter 1 written and into the minds of readers as I had made a promise to several people about the timing for the publishing of the rewrite.<br>I would like to specifically call out one person who sent me a PM regarding an issue of morality in Chapter 18. Thank you, txreader, for finding this issue and calling my attention to it.  
>Thanks, as always, to my beloved betas. I am truly blessed to have them. Special thanks, once more, to texan-muggle, for doing the pre-publishing read-through and finding the holes and bumps in the chapters.<br>-o-AN-o-  
>-oOoOo-<p>

-oOoOo-

The others were all shocked. Although Frank and Alice were in a vegetative state, there was no reason they should have been in any danger of dying. "How is this possible, Minerva?" Severus asked in genuine concern.

"The DMLE is being tight-lipped about it at the moment, but it appears to be poisoning of some sort. They were both normal last evening, but this morning Alice's complexion turned greyish-yellow. At eleven this morning, she began convulsing and frothing at the mouth and died within an hour. Frank's complexion has also turned greyish-yellow. None of the healers have seen anything like it before," Minerva said, then turned to Albus. "What happened to Miss Granger? You said it was urgent."

Albus looked at her, "Severus and Rubeus apparently broke into a classroom just as she was about to be sexually assaulted. She was unharmed, but she is hysterical at the moment, as you can see. I thought that perhaps the presence of her most-respected professor would help calm her," Albus said.

Minerva didn't respond. She simply walked over to the side of the bed and placed her hand on Hermione's back and the other on Luna's back. "Miss Granger, you are safe now. No one here will allow any harm to come to you," Minerva said gently.

Harry opened his eyes when he felt a foreign magic come in proximity to them and saw it was Professor McGonagall. He felt her concern and her righteous anger.

Hermione's sobbing quieted to the point a few of her words became intelligible. "So... scared... he... unforgivables... touched... me... so... afraid..." could be understood before she buried her face once more into Harry's chest but her sobbing had subsided and she was now only crying.

Minerva stood there, continuing to rub gentle circles in Hermione's back. Luna released her hold on Harry's legs and slowly sat up, her tears having subsided. "Hermione Love, you're safe now. I am sorry I couldn't run faster. I'm sorry I didn't think to get Professor Snape earlier. Please forgive me," Luna pleaded with the older girl.

Hermione sat up quickly, nearly smacking her head into Luna's and pulled Luna into a hug. "You saved me, Luna! There is nothing to forgive, My Little Moon! My Love!" Hermione exclaimed, holding onto the younger girl fiercely.

Minerva removed her hand from Hermione's back so that Luna could return the hug. She was somewhat shocked by Hermione's declaration about Luna being her love, and further shocked by Harry smiling at the two girls hugging one another. Minerva became even more stunned when Hermione pushed back from the hug and gave Luna a not-at-all-chaste kiss.

Harry, who was unable to sit up, looked at the expression of incredulity on Professor McGonagall's face then looked over at Neville, Susan and Hannah. "Professor McGonagall, can you tell me why Neville appears to be so distraught?" Harry asked quietly.

Minerva explained the situation to Harry. Harry's expression turned solemn. Any anger he had in his mind directed at Neville for him not being there to keep his promise to protect Hermione evaporated. _Neville is likely upset about that as well, or would be if he knows,_ Harry thought.

Neville, accompanied by Susan and Hannah, walked over to Harry's bed. Neville was shuffling his feet, his eyes downcast. His entire demeanour was that of someone completely demoralised. It was painfully obvious to Harry that Neville knew about Hermione's experience.

Hermione pulled out of her kiss with Luna and realised she had quite an audience. She blushed bright red at the looks she received from Professors McGonagall, Snape, Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey.

Minerva found her voice. "Miss Granger, I am so happy to see no permanent harm came to you and that Professor Snape and Hagrid found you in time," she said. As Minerva said his name, Severus, followed by Albus and Poppy, walked over to the enlarged bed.

"Yes, Miss Granger, I, too, am very pleased to see you unharmed," Severus said wryly, trying to hide the smile that threatened to appear on his face.

Luna jumped off the bed and threw her arms around the now-stunned Potions Master, "Oh! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You saved My Hermione!" Luna said enthusiastically.

Severus looked down at Luna, putting his hands on her wrists and gently, but firmly, removing her from around him. He spoke to Luna, though his words were more for show than a true admonishment, "While I can understand your relief and exuberance, Miss Lovegood, I prefer to not be hugged in public or by students. You are, however, most welcome. I thank you for finding Professor Hagrid and me as quickly as you did so that the situation could be ameliorated."

"Miss Granger, I would like to check you over, if you don't mind. I believe Professor Snape had something he wished to discuss with you, as well," Madam Pomfrey said to the utterly embarrassed girl.

Hermione nodded and held Harry's left hand. Madam Pomfrey shook her head, "Miss Granger, why don't we retire to my office so you may have some privacy while I examine you," she said and swept her gaze at the remaining people standing in the room, "and the rest of you may visit with Mister Potter until curfew, if you like, but you must all leave at that time." She reached out for Hermione to take hold of her hand. Hermione looked down at Harry and gave him a quick peck on the lips before taking Madam Pomfrey's hand and disappearing into her office for a few minutes.

-oOoOo-

Harry watched Hermione enter Madam Pomfrey's office. The door closed and he looked over at Neville, who had begun crying once more.

"Neville, come here, Brother," Harry said, the loss of his own parents freshly remembered.

Luna looked up sharply at Neville. She reached out with her magic, as Harry had taught her, and could feel his pain. Her pain for the loss of her father, although absolved by her parents, was still held deeply. Susan, whose parents and infant little brother had been murdered at the hands of Death Eaters when she was seven, had clearly been crying for Neville's loss. Hannah felt like she was the only one who had not suffered catastrophically from the machinations of the Death Eaters, and as such was the one source of stability in the room.

Neville walked around the bed as Harry reached out to him with his good arm. He sat heavily on the bed, crossed his hands in his lap and looked down at them. He was shaking slightly. He looked at Harry momentarily then back at his hands. Harry saw Neville's eyes. They looked haunted, fearful.

"I am so sorry I didn't keep my promise Harry," Neville whispered, his entire body trembled in expectation of the expected backlash from Harry. It never materialised.

Instead, Harry reached out with his hand and tried to take Neville's hand in his own but Neville was sitting too far away. Luna took Neville's hand. He looked up at her sharply. She looked into his eyes then jerked her eyes down to Harry's awaiting hand. Neville looked down then reached out tentatively and put his hand in Harry's. Neville braced himself, tightening the muscles of his back, shoulders, hips, arms, legs. Even his toes were clenched. But his hand was no more tense than he would use for a handshake. The look on his face changed dramatically as Harry spoke. Neville's look had been stilled to careful neutrality. When Harry's words met his ears, his eyes widened, his jaw slackened and he looked down at Harry as if he expected to see a three-headed dog singing "God Save The Queen" growing from the sheets.

Harry looked up at Neville and squeezed his hand, "Neville, I am sorry to hear about your Mum. To have brought into the world and raised, even for too short a time, such a kind, brave person. I wish I had met her face-to-face. I hope Gran will be willing to introduce me to her by telling us about her. If there is anything we can do to save your Father, it will be done. I swear it!" Harry said, as if he had not heard Neville apologising.

"Is she unharmed?" Neville asked Harry, still not believing his ears.

Harry shrugged, "She wasn't physically harmed," he said, a grim expression on his face, but seeing how Neville's face fell at this news, he continued, "but I do not hold you at fault or accountable, Neville." He squeezed Neville's hand again, "This was not your doing, Nev," Harry said, looking piercingly at Neville.

Neville nodded. There were no smiles in the group.

Albus looked on at the two young lords. He owed these two so much more than he could repay them in this life and spoke with Harry. "My Lords, while it is outside my responsibility as Headmaster of Hogwarts, I am an accomplished alchemist. There may be something my long years can contribute to saving Lord Longbottom's father's life. With your permission, I shall go immediately to St. Mungo's with that in mind," Albus said earnestly.

Harry looked at Neville who looked back at Harry with pleading eyes.

Harry looked up at Albus, "Headmaster Dumbledore, you have my permission to do what you can. Cost is no object. Should you need to hire others, do so. As I understand the situation, time is of the essence. Please go now."

Albus nodded at the two young men, strode to the fireplace, threw in some floo powder, clearly enunciated, "St. Mungo's," and walked into the fire.

"Thank you, Harry," Neville said softly, closing his eyes in an effort to stem the tears. Susan pulled Neville's head to her chest. Hannah put one hand on Neville's shoulder and the other hand on Harry's knee. Neville relinquished his hold on Harry's hand and wrapped his arms around Susan, desperately trying to prevent the unshed tears from falling.

-oOoOo-

Poppy finished her examination of Hermione, ensuring she missed nothing. As part of her training as a mediwitch and her self-induced requirement to be the best healer she could be for the children in her care, she took courses from a muggle university in child psychology. She looked with concern at the young girl. She seemed far more nervous than she had been when Poppy had performed a similar examination when Hermione first came to Hogwarts. The nervousness could not simply be explained away as puberty and its emotional and physical manifestations. The girl was shaking as she put her clothing back on. She barely had the manual dexterity required to fasten the buttons of her robes and she frequently looked warily at the closed door.

"Miss Granger," Poppy said softly, causing Hermione to practically leap into the air. Poppy looked at her and had seen that look once before. It had been of a field mouse, frozen in fear at the movements of a cat hunting it. At the last moment, the mouse had tried to escape, but it had leapt neatly into the cat's claws. Hermione had that same horrifically fearful gaze. "You are safe now, Miss Granger. No one here will harm you," Poppy said softly.

Hermione didn't speak, but to Poppy's experience, her body was speaking loudly enough. Two fat tears ran down her cheeks as her eyes moved rapidly between the door and Poppy. Poppy realised one of the likely causes of Hermione's fear was she was standing between the girl and the door. The door being closed likely only helped to intensify her fear. Poppy slowly opened the door and moved so she would be out of reach of the girl if she decided to run. Hermione took a deep breath and her shaking, although lessened, did not completely subside. If only for the fact there was no other sound in the office, Poppy would not have heard Hermione's faint, "Thank you, Madam Pomfrey."

Poppy nodded then explained something else which needed to happen tonight, "Miss Granger, Professor Snape asked if he could speak with you regarding this evening. If you wish, Professor McGonagall, Miss Lovegood, myself or all three of us could be present in the room with Professor Snape while he speaks with you, if you are willing to allow him to do so at all."

Hermione closed her eyes and shook, a wave of fear washing over her, "Yes please," she said.

Poppy, realising she was going to have to interpret that answer, decided to err on the side of caution as she walked past Hermione, to the door, giving the girl a wide pass to prevent her from panicking. Poppy stepped well away from the door before calling out to the assembled group in the infirmary.

"Professor Snape, Miss Granger is willing to speak with you but has requested Professor McGonagall, Miss Lovegood and I be present," Poppy explained.

Severus nodded, "I believe that would be for the best." He then turned to Harry and his words shocked Neville, Susan and Hannah, but also surprised Harry and Luna. "Lord Potter, I am going to ask Miss Granger her permission to allow me to perform Legilimency on her to determine precisely the events of this evening. As her Lord, I will require your permission as well," he explained.

Harry asked, the strain in his voice clearly showing his surprise, "How did you...?" but he was cut off by Severus.

Severus surprised him once more, "My Lord, your house elf's form of address communicated the necessary information to determine the relationship."

Harry nodded mutely then answered the original question, "If the Lady gives you her permission, then you have mine. Be gentle with her, Potions Master."

Severus nodded at Harry and gave him a slight bow. He then turned to Luna and Minerva. "Ladies, shall we attend Miss Granger?" he asked, inviting them to walk ahead of him to Poppy's office.

Minerva put her arm around Luna's shoulders and led the girl to Poppy's office. Severus followed four steps behind.

-oOoOo-

Hermione looked up as Madam Pomfrey re-entered the office followed by Luna and Professor McGonagall. Luna, nearly overwhelmed with the sense of fear she felt over her bond, ran over to Hermione and wrapped her arms around her. Hermione gently enclosed the younger girl and buried her face into Luna's hair, inhaling deeply. Her senses filled with the scents of lavender, heather and a light, intoxicating scent of honey. The fear gripping her heart nearly evaporated as a sense of safety flooded into her mind. The sight of Professor Snape entering and the look on his face filled her with some trepidation due to the memories of him from last year, but the image of him bursting into the DADA classroom on Hagrid's heels, his wand drawn and murder in his eyes took the remainder of her fear and shredded it, tossing bits of it around the room and back into the dark corners where it belonged.

Luna could feel the fear radiating from Hermione while Madam Pomfrey had been examining her. It seemed to intensify just before Madam Pomfrey left her office to come get them. As she walked in and saw her love see her, Luna felt a spike of relief yet it was still tinged by an unspeakable, deep-seated fear. She had run to Hermione and engulfed her in a hug. She felt Hermione bury her face in her hair and nuzzle her neck. And she felt the fear nearly disappear and a spreading calm blanket Hermione's fears, nearly smothering them. Luna then felt a moment of apprehension in her Love before that, too, disappeared completely along with the fear going away. She then heard Professor Snape speak.

"Miss Granger, I surmise you are physically unharmed?" Severus asked. Although Poppy nodded, he waited for Hermione to answer.

"I am fine, Professor Snape," Hermione said quietly over Luna's shoulder, unwilling to release her hold on the younger witch in her arms.

Severus raised an eyebrow, "Miss Granger, while you might feel as if nothing is wrong with you due to tonight's events, please do not lie to yourself or to me about your state of mind. To heal from such an event even though, as it were, nothing physically happened, you were frightened for your own physical and mental well-being and quite possibly the same for others at Hogwarts. Lying to yourself about your fears and insecurities is unwise."

Hermione's hold on Luna unconsciously tightened slightly as she thought of it having been Luna trapped with Lockhart instead of herself. She nodded at Severus.

Severus' look at her softened before he spoke again, "Do you know what Legilimency is, Miss Granger?"

Hermione nodded, "I was reading about it, and its related skill, Occlumency, in the Founders' common room. The more I read, the more I became interested in advancing my skills in both and teaching both Luna and Harry the skills," she said softly. She released Luna from the hug. Luna kissed her on the cheek before releasing Hermione, but held one of Hermione's hands as she turned to look at the three adults.

Severus nodded, "I believe that would be a wise decision. With regard to Legilimency, I would like your permission to see the events which transpired this evening in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, and possibly any other events which may relate to it. I warn you should you provide me with that permission, you will, in essence, re-live each of the events in your own mind. It will not be possible for you to falsify or otherwise alter the memories. Is this acceptable to you?" he asked.

Hermione pulled Luna to her once more. Luna could feel the fear radiating from Hermione, but could feel her resolve as well.

Hermione nodded, "I will allow it," she said, then opened her eyes wide and looked directly at the potions professor.

Severus took a step forward, pulled his wand and, as gently as he could, began probing through her memories. He saw all of the events within the classroom. He watched the interactions as they walked to the Quidditch Stadium. He then reviewed all of her memories from that evening from the Infirmary and from Madam Pomfrey's examination of her. Other than the barely contained rage he felt towards Lockhart, two events stood out in his mind which would require him to speak with Harry again, preferably privately.

Severus blinked, releasing his contact with Hermione. She shuddered and practically smothered Luna in a hug, softly crying into her shoulder. "Miss Granger, my apologies for having to put you through that again. I need to speak with Lord Potter for a moment, but I am going to recommend, Madam Pomfrey, that both Lady Lovegood and Miss Granger sleep in the Infirmary tonight with Lord Potter," he said before turning and leaving.

Poppy was about to argue about how improper that would be until she saw Minerva simply nod at his back. _What is going on here?_ she thought.

Minerva looked at the two young witches embracing. _What is going on here?_ she thought, for similar reasons.

-oOoOo-

Susan and Hannah looked down at Neville then over at Harry. "How is your arm, Harry?" Susan asked, trying to find a lighter subject to discuss.

Harry let out an explosive laugh, looking up at Susan, who had a hurt look on her face. "Susan, I was not laughing at you," he said, causing Susan's features to soften, "I was just thinking that, with everything else going on, I had completely forgotten about it. It itches like mad, but on the inside. Madam Pomfrey couldn't give me any pain or numbing potions because they apparently interact with the bone-growing potion. Being strapped down to the bed doesn't help either, but I couldn't promise her I wouldn't just move about in my sleep, hence the chest strap to keep my arm from moving."

Hannah looked down at Harry with a smile, "I, for one, Lord Abbot, was most impressed with your catching of the snitch and sending Malfoy to the infirmary as well."

Harry looked around, wondering how he would have missed Draco in the room.

"He's not here now. Madam Pomfrey probably fixed him up and sent him on his way. That bludger going through his broom left a wand-sized piece through his hand," Susan explained.

"Fortunately, only you, Malfoy and Flint were injured. I'm really sorry about your broom, Lord Abbot. And your arm," Hannah said. She then turned to Susan and looked meaningfully at Neville. Susan caught her meaning and pulled Neville to stand from the bed, "Neville, let's go talk in the hall for a moment," she said. Neville looked up at her and let her lead him away.

Hannah turned back to Harry. "Lord Abbot, I..." but she was stopped as the door to Madam Pomfrey's office opened and Professor Snape strode out, focused on the young lord in bed. Severus looked at Harry, then at a blushing Hannah, then at Harry again.

He addressed Harry, "Lord Potter, after reviewing Miss Granger's memories, I would like to review your memories from earlier today," he said in an authoritative voice.

"For what reasons, Potions Master?" Harry asked, concerned Severus may look at other things he would keep secret from him.

Severus turned to Hannah, "Miss Abbot, would you excuse us for a moment?"

Hannah nodded, "Harry, I am going to go check on Hermione and Luna. I will be back," she looked at Severus, "in a few minutes?" she asked of him. Severus nodded. Hannah kissed Harry on the cheek and walked into Poppy's office. Once she entered and closed the door, Severus turned back to Harry.

"Lord Potter, there are issues at play here you may not be aware of and the more information I can gather and assemble regarding this incident and this individual, the better the opportunity to deal with this miscreant more effectively. Legilimency will cause you to re-live any memories I view so you will know what I have seen," Severus explained.

Harry looked at Severus and thought about his interactions with the man since he had lost his dark mark. Not once in his association with Severus had the man ever lied to him. Petty, certainly. Vindictive, definitely. Never a liar. "Yes, Potions Master, you may do so," he said. "What do I need to do?" he asked.

"Open your eyes wide and do not clench your mind or your magic. You will feel me enter your mind and I will be most careful to focus on the memories I am looking for. It would help if you could clear your mind and think about your interactions with Professor Lockhart," Severus said.

Harry nodded, closed his eyes for a moment, cleared his thoughts and focused on the DADA professor. He then opened his eyes wide and looked directly at Severus' eyes.

Severus raised his wand and began casting. He watched from Harry's perspective as Hermione toppled Lockhart in the book store. He watched as Harry felt the rage rising in him as Lockhart caressed the fourth year girl on the path to the Quidditch Stadium. He felt the rage spike again as Lockhart pulled Hermione to him and he was suddenly looking up at Lockhart as the man vanished the bones in Harry's arms. Severus then had an experience he had never had before. He was looking at Lockhart and was suddenly thrust into Lockhart's fantasy as to what the man wanted to do with Hermione. She had belittled him in the book store so he was going to take her innocence using force, use her repeatedly the entire night, heal her and restore her hymen, then obliviate her and, in the thrall following a strong obliviation, implant an unreasonably strong infatuation with him in her mind. Severus was then tossed back into Harry's memories, where he suddenly caught a flash of what Hermione and Luna meant to Harry. They were surrounded by a golden halo, and on their shoulders, an impossibly large owl was surrounding them with her white, incandescent wings. Severus then found himself thrown out of Harry's mind so violently that his knees buckled.

Harry was infuriated, "SNAPE!" Harry shouted.

Severus held up his hand to the angry, young man. "My apologies, Lord Potter, but I shall not speak of what I saw regarding your Ladies. It was your strength of will which took me to them. I did not head in that direction within your mind," he explained, his eyes still downcast as he rose to one knee.

Harry's anger evaporated as he realised the man was telling the truth. After reliving seeing Lockhart's fantasy, Harry needed to immerse himself again in his mental shrine to Hermione and Luna. "My apologies, Potion Master Snape, for both my anger and my causing you harm. I was in the wrong. You were not," Harry said, realising the man had only been trying to help.

Severus stood and looked, once more, at Harry. "My Lord, I will need to review the Tome of Punishments to determine if anyone else was possibly harmed by Professor Lockhart. I will return shortly," Severus said.

-oOoOo-

Hannah entered Madam Pomfrey's office and stopped at the sight in front of her. Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall were staring at Hermione and Luna, who were just finishing up a hug. Hermione, facing the door, saw the three of them staring at her and Luna, the two adults somewhat shocked and Hannah somewhat embarrassed. "Professor Snape said I should come in here so as to not disturb his conversation with Harry," Hannah said, surprising the two older witches, who both turned around quickly.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow, "How did you find yourself in the middle of all of this, Miss Abbot?"

Hannah felt as if she was in the Great Hall with all eyes looking at her. "I am Susan Bones' best friend, she is Neville Longbottom's girlfriend, Neville is Harry's best friend, Hermione and Luna are Harry's girlfriends and my good friends."

Minerva's eyebrows shot into her hairline at that explanation and she turned back to Hermione and Luna, "Both of you are Mister Potter's girlfriends?" she asked.

Hermione blushed and was about to explain when Luna spoke up, "Deputy Headmistress McGonagall, Lord Potter's personal life is not subject to questioning; neither is Lord Longbottom's nor my own. As Miss Granger's legal guardian is Lord Potter, her personal life is also not subject to questioning. However, to answer your question, neither Miss Granger nor I are Lord Potter's girlfriends. Miss Abbot is simply mistaken," Luna said with a tone of authority.

Minerva was now speechless. Not only had she been told to leave well enough alone, she was not permitted to ask any clarifying questions regarding their relationship. "My apologies, Lady Lovegood. I intended no offence. I was merely attempting to clarify the situation," Minerva said gently.

Luna switched back to her normal tone of voice, "No need to apologise, Professor McGonagall. While I am certain many girls at Hogwarts would like to be Harry's girlfriend, Hermione and I are not in that category," she said smiling, then turned around to look at a shocked Hermione and gave her a firm kiss on the lips, "Are we, Hermione-Love?"

Hermione could only shake her head. Luna was filling her mind with how much Hermione's love and care meant to her and it was overwhelming the older girl.

"Perhaps I should see if Professor Snape is done speaking with Mister Potter," a thoroughly embarrassed McGonagall said and, walking passed Hannah, left Poppy's office.

"I shall come with you," Poppy said, rushing out of her own office as well.

Hannah slowly walked over to Hermione and Luna. She was looking down and blushing. "I am sorry, you two. I just thought the way you two acted around Harry and with what Susan has been telling me, I just presumed you were his girlfriends," she said softly.

Luna looked at Hermione, and motioned her head towards Hannah. Hermione understood Luna was asking if she could tell Hannah the whole truth. Hermione had a two-word answer for her, "Vassal oath."

Luna nodded happily, "Thank you, Mione-Love," she said and gave Hermione a kiss on the cheek.

Hannah had heard "vassal oath" and, for the first time, felt uncomfortable in the presence of these two girls.

"Miss Abbot, what we are about to tell you falls under the category of personal life of Lord Abbot, and as such you are not permitted to discuss it with anyone who is not so sworn, or who do not already have this knowledge. Do you understand?" Luna asked.

Hannah took a deep breath. Although she had not taken the family oaths yet, she knew her father would be held accountable if she violated the terms of the oath. "I understand," she whispered.

Luna leaned in close to Hannah's ear, "We're not Harry's girlfriends because we're his wives," she whispered so softly she could not hear her own words. Luna then kissed her ear gently.

Hannah pulled her head back and looked at Luna in disbelief. She then noticed, for the first time, the rings which adorned Hermione's and Luna's left ring fingers. She looked up at Hermione, who had a wary look on her face. Then Hannah did the only thing a true friend of Hermione and Luna could do. She squealed in excitement, then held her hands to her chin to keep her jaw from hitting the floor. She gathered Luna and Hermione into a hug. She couldn't even speak. _Here was the single most eligible male at Hogwarts. Wealth, political power, sweet, caring, kind, and from what Susan described, a great kisser, and these two had managed to convince him to marry them both. Wow! Just Wow!_ she thought. _Okay, technically Susan said Luna was a great kisser but that Harry had taught her how to kiss and these two were going to check with Harry if it was okay for them to teach Susan how to kiss too. I wonder..._she thought then decided to just ask. "I'm really happy for you three! Susan said you two were going to ask Harry if it was fine with him to give Susan kissing lessons. Can I get kissing lessons, too?" she asked, her cheeks turning a deep, rosy hue.

Luna turned to Hermione, silently asking permission. Hannah watched as Hermione leaned down to Luna's ear and whispered something to the younger girl as she looked at Hannah. Hannah wasn't sure what Hermione had whispered in Luna's ear but it must have been exciting based on the way Luna smiled a little smile, closed her eyes and shuddered before Hermione stood up to smile at her.

Hermione placed her hand on the back of Luna's head and began rubbing her head as she spoke to Hannah. "Hannah, as much as I would like to begin your kissing lessons tonight, we've both been through a lot and I am knackered. Since tomorrow is Sunday, maybe Luna and I can show you and Susan around the Founders' Quarters and we can sneak off to the bath and begin those kissing lessons," she said, then blushed. "I forgot, Hannah. There is one rule we promised Harry we would abide by: Harry gets to watch us give the lessons."

Hannah's eyes opened widely as she gasped in air and her jaw went slack. "What?" she asked incredulously.

"Harry likes to watch," Hermione tried explaining.

"He isn't the only one," Hannah blurted out, blushing madly and putting her hand over her mouth in an effort to prevent herself from saying anything else incriminating.

-oOoOo-

Gilderoy was sitting in his office. He had heard the first door fail and heard one attempt to break down the door he was behind. He had then heard muffled voices and then silence for the past two hours. He'd been unable to open the door normally or using magic. He had even tried using a reducto to blow the door down. It hadn't even scratched the paint. "What to do... what to do..." he mumbled to himself. He snapped his fingers and called out the name of the Hogwarts house elf he had used to collect knickers from some of the young lovelies with whom he was enamoured. "Prickly!" he called out confidently.

A house elf wearing a Hogwarts tabard with all of the houses on it appeared. "Professor Lockhart be calling Prickly?" the elf asked.

"Yes, Prickly. I seem to be unable to open this door and I need to do so to go to my quarters," Lockhart said with a confident smile.

Prickly looked at the door, waved his hands over it then looked back at Lockhart with a sad expression on his face, "Prickly can't be opening the door. Professor Snapesees locked it and asked Hoggywarts to keep it locked. I's will go ask Professor Snapesees," Prickly said, snapped his fingers and disappeared before Lockhart could stop him.

"Prickly! Prickly! PRICKLY!" Lockhart shouted then looked around. "Bloody elf!" he shouted to the otherwise empty room. He looked around for a moment and noticed, for the first time, a small opening in the wall at floor level. "Well. We may be getting out after all," he said to himself before turning into his animagus form.

-oOoOo-

Severus was in McGonagall's office looking through the Tome of Punishments. Had anyone else been in the office with him, they would likely have been afraid for their very life if they thought the grim look on the Potions Master's face was a result of something they had done. The number of students whose memories he would need to sort through was growing by the turn of the page. He was fairly certain he could bypass anyone who had been given a detention during lunch, but anyone who had one or more detentions after hours, on a weekend or been given multiple detentions, whether male or female, with Lockhart was going to need to have Legilimency used on them. The list of students who had already had more than one after-hours detention with him was fifty-seven students long. Severus was also concerned with the number of times two or more girls in third and fourth year had detentions with Lockhart where the detentions had been assigned by Lockhart multiple evenings in a row. He started for a moment as the stern deputy headmistress spoke to him from the door of her office.

"Mister Potter told me I would find you looking at the Tome of Punishments, though he would not tell me the reasons. What are you looking for, Severus?" she asked in concern.

Severus pointed out the entries in the book, starting on the third of September, which were of concern to him.

"He isn't supposed to be assigning detentions with himself. Albus specifically informed all of us..." Minerva said as she looked at the entries and after the beginning of the second week of term, she stopped mid-sentence as she spotted a pattern which had her sucking in her breath. "In the name of all that is sacred..." she whispered in shock.

Severus, too, finally noticed the pattern as well. "All of the girls are muggleborn. All of the boys are blonde," he said, then looked at one name that chilled his blood. Draco Malfoy. Filch had reassigned Draco's detention to Lockhart and Lockhart had escorted Draco back to the Slytherin dungeons after curfew for ten nights.

POP!

Both professors whipped around, their wands in their hands. Severus had already cast a silent shield spell before fully turning.

"Prickly is sorry for startling Professor Snapesees and Deputy Kitty," the elf said.

Minerva put her wand away and noticed Severus had a smirk. She raised an eyebrow at him.

He answered the unasked question with one of his own, "Deputy Kitty? How appropriate," he said then turned to the elf.

Minerva ignored the question, "What is it, Prickly?" she asked the elf.

"Professor Lockhart needs Professor Snapesees to open the door to the hall so Professor Lockhart can go to his quarters," the elf said, wringing his hands together.

Severus looked from the elf to Minerva, "Minerva, while I am certain Lord Potter would deal with this in a fashion I would find wholly appropriate," Severus said, watching the stern deputy headmistress for any signs of argument, "I think he has enough catastrophe in his life to add this as well. You know that if Albus was in the castle, he would not permit this issue to be dealt with in a permanent fashion. I believe the two of us should deal with the miscreant before Albus returns."

Minerva McGonagall was a witch with strong moral fibre and a will of iron. There was one chink in her armour, if one could truly call it a failing. The safety and happiness of the children in her care was paramount. "Severus, if he has done things to harm the children, he will have no quarter from me. Let us retire to Albus' office, to use his pensieve, so that I may review what you learned from talking with Miss Granger and Mister Potter," she said, a far-off look in her eyes.

Severus nodded and gestured for her to lead the way.

-oOoOo-

Hermione and Luna each took one of Hannah's arms and walked out of Madam Pomfrey's office. They found Harry and Madam Pomfrey quietly conversing about Harry's parents. Madam Pomfrey was clearly reminiscing about James and Lily and steadfastly ignoring the silent trickle of tears on both Harry's and her cheeks. The three girls approached as quietly as they could so as to not interrupt Madam Pomfrey.

"...and James did this aerial somersault on one of the old Cleansweep Five brooms and managed to crash it into the pitch directly in front of Lily. She rushed over to him, berating him about his flying, his attitude and his general lack of good qualities when he stood up, his left arm broken and handed her the snitch with his right hand. She went quiet, looked at the snitch, looked up at James and that is when he asked her to be his girlfriend. It was clear to all of the faculty that she was sweet on him and the yelling was nothing more than a front. Anyway, she smiled at him and, being careful of his left arm, kissed him soundly and thoroughly. That was fifth year and they were inseparable," Madam Pomfrey said, then looked down at Harry. "Your Miss Granger reminds me very much of Lily, I will have you know. Brilliant, beautiful and a balancing influence for you. She said she wasn't your girlfriend, but I can tell she is sweet on you, Mr. Potter and that you care for her as well. Just don't hurt her feelings or I may reconsider putting you back together after your Quidditch matches."

Hannah cleared her throat meaningfully. Madam Pomfrey turned around, startled at the noise and saw the three girls standing behind her. She couldn't help but notice Hermione was the colour of beets.

Madam Pomfrey wiped her eyes. "Ladies, Mister Potter and I were just talking about his parents," Madam Pomfrey said.

Luna looked at Madam Pomfrey and asked formally, "Madam Pomfrey, is your family still sworn to the House of Gaunt?"

Madam Pomfrey looked at Luna, surprised by the unexpected direction and tone of the question. "The House of Pomfrey is still sworn to the House of Gaunt, Miss Lovegood," Poppy said. "For what reason are you inquiring?" she asked curiously.

Luna interspersed herself between Hannah and a still-blushing Hermione and whispered quietly into Hermione's ear, never taking her eyes from Madam Pomfrey. Hermione looked at Madam Pomfrey as well, then looked at Luna and shrugged, gesturing to Harry. Luna walked around the bed to the far side, climbed up on it and snuggled in close to Harry, still not taking her eyes off Madam Pomfrey, and whispered into his ear. Harry listened for a moment before his eyebrows went into his hairline. After a moment, his face relaxed and a small smile appeared on his lips. He turned to Luna, kissed her full on the mouth, lingering for a moment, then broke the kiss and nodded to her.

Poppy was now completely confused. She knew Hermione had been crushing on Harry since last year, that Harry was now staying with her parents and they were now his legal guardians in the muggle world. Yet, here in front of her, Harry had just kissed Xeno's and Maia's little girl, and not in a chaste way either. She watched as Luna got up from the bed, walked over to her. Then, shockingly, considering the way Luna had not stopped staring at her, even long enough to blink, Luna embraced her in a fierce, affectionate hug. Poppy was at first stunned, then embarrassed. "Miss Lovegood, what did I do to deserve this display of affection?" she asked, putting her hands on Luna's shoulders.

Luna looked up at her and pulled away slightly. "Madam Pomfrey, you care. You would willingly open your home to Harry, you take care of him when he hurts himself and you watch out for him," Luna said, a hint of emotion in her voice.

Before she could say anything, Madam Pomfrey was cut off by Hermione and she turned to face the brunette. "I would have liked to have been Harry's girlfriend, even if just for a day or two," she said, Poppy noticed, with a broad smile.

She then turned back to Luna who spoke with authority, "As Lady Lovegood, I recognise you are bound by your vassal oaths to the ancient and noble House of Gaunt and am entrusting you, and you alone, with information you need, should you choose to hear it. Know, however, your vassal oaths will prevent you from speaking of it with anyone not so sworn. Do you wish me to tell you this information, Healer Pomfrey?"

Poppy was taken aback. Although she, too, had witnessed Rubeus being granted a house and a seat on the Wizengamot, she still thought of Harry and Luna as kind, gentle students and not as a Lord and Lady. "Lady Lovegood, if you feel I should know this information, then by all means, please tell me. While I am aware of my vassal oaths, I am more acutely aware of my oath as a Healer. If any are present who should not know this information, then perhaps we should retire to my office for some privacy," she explained.

Luna was now bouncing up and down as if she had just been given a baby snorkack of her very own. She pulled out her wand and pointed it at herself. "On my magic, I swear to you, Healer Pomfrey, I speak the truth when I say Lord Harry James Potter is married to and bonded with Lady Hermione Jane Potter and Luna Selene Potter, Lady Lovegood. So mote it be," Luna said. She pulsed a pale shade of lavender for a moment. She then pointed her wand at the ceiling and incanted, "Lumos!" Due to her excitement, the light coming from the end of her wand was quite nearly blinding. "Sorry," she said, "nox!" and the light went out.

Once her vision returned to normal, Poppy stared at the excited young girl in front of her. _Married? How...? It matters not how, _she thought. She turned to Harry, "Congratulations, Mister Potter. Or should I be congratulating My Lord?" she said with a somewhat concerned expression.

Harry smiled at her, "If we're amongst friends, and have no need for formality, would calling me 'Harry' be acceptable?"

Poppy smiled at the boy she had seen far too often needing her in her professional capacity. "Thank you, Harry. Now do try to remain calm for the remainder of the evening. I believe that, with Rubeus guarding the infirmary entrance, I am safe in giving both Ladies dreamless sleep potions. Due to the Skele-Gro potion I cannot give you one. I believe I shall need to be giving Mr Longbottom and Miss Bones some as well," she said, then turned to Hannah. "Miss Abbot, will you be remaining with Mr Longbottom and Miss Bones?" Poppy asked Hannah with a slight, knowing smile.

Hannah nodded, then looked at Harry and swallowed, "I will be staying in the infirmary the night, if Lord Abbot has no objections," she said, blushing slightly and looking at the floor.

Harry reached out his intact arm to Hannah, "Come here, Hannah," he said softly.

Hannah walked slowly over to the bed, sat down on it and took his hand. He gently tugged on her hand and she understood he wanted her to lay next to him while he spoke to her. "Hannah," he whispered, "I meant what I said. You get to make those decisions. I feel incredibly guilty for taking those decisions away from Hermione and Luna. No woman or girl in any family I am the head of will be married off to a man she doesn't want to be with. Ever. Just be careful, please. Neville is my best friend. He has lost his mother and, although Headmaster Dumbledore is a brilliant alchemist, I am worried Neville is going to lose his father as well."

Hannah smiled. "Harry," she whispered back, "you know you are the very best. I already spoke with Susan about this, though. Because your arm won't be healed until the late tomorrow morning, I was going to bunk with you, Luna and Hermione. Hermione needs to be surrounded by warm, caring people tonight, even if she is given a dreamless sleeping potion. She'll still dream once she gets close to wakefulness in the morning and having two girls surrounding her will help dispel the bad dreams that much more quickly." She paused for a moment and looked a little sad, "Besides, I don't think Neville likes me very much. He gets really nervous when I am around."

Harry looked at her for a moment then spoke his mind, "Hannah, what's not to like? You're smart, pretty and likely Susan's best friend. If he's nervous when you're around, it's probably because he likes you but doesn't want Susan to think he likes you better than her. As to bunking with us tonight, I appreciate your thoughtfulness."

Hannah kissed his cheek and stood. "I should get Susan and Neville from the hallway," she said, then walked towards the door.

As he watched Hannah walk away, Harry thought of something and turned to Poppy. "Madam Pomfrey, is Mrs. Norris here?" he asked.

Poppy was surprised by the change in direction, but answered. "She is in a cat bed in my office, enchanted by Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall," she said.

"When everyone gets settled, could you bring her to me? I don't mean her any harm and just wished to pet her," Harry explained.

Poppy looked at Harry, "I suppose, Harry, but she won't feel you pet her. She has been petrified and will be oblivious to anything happening to her until she is awoken with the mandrake potion."

Harry looked up at the ceiling, "I just...I remember stories of coma patients being spoken to while they lay in bed unresponsive and...well...I guess I just wanted her to know she was not forgotten." Hermione and Luna could feel Harry's sadness like a wave washing over them, so overwhelming in its power that it had the girls near tears. Poppy went into her office. Upon coming out with Mrs. Norris, cat bed and all, she found Hermione snuggled into Harry on his good side and Luna snuggled into Hermione. Poppy set Mrs. Norris' cat bed down on Harry's stomach so he could easily reach her as well as to provide additional incentive to not move during the night. Both Harry and Hermione stroked the petrified cat, while Luna softly cooed to her, telling her what a brave and noble cat she was. At that moment, a miniature silver phoenix popped into the room and headed straight to Madam Pomfrey. It trilled in her ear a moment before disappearing in a puff of silver smoke. A tear escaped from Poppy's eye and she opened a potion cabinet and removed two vials. She looked at Harry, who was looking at her.

Harry asked, "Neville's father?" to which she nodded sadly, another tear leaking down his face.

At that moment, Professor Dumbledore and Susan Bones escorted a clearly distraught Neville into the infirmary. Hannah followed along behind, looking lost and feeling useless. They led him over to the bed next to Harry's and sat him down. Poppy handed a crying, pale Susan one of the potions. She placed it in Neville's hand then helped put it to his lips and tip it back. Neville swallowed it down without thought. Within moments, Neville was asleep and leaning against Susan's shoulder. Dumbledore helped him lie down in bed and expanded the bed large enough for the two of them. Poppy handed Susan the second potion. She looked at Neville, nodded and drank the potion before laying down and cuddling into Neville. She, too, was asleep within moments. Poppy carefully took off her shoes. Albus took off Neville's shoes and transfigured both children's robes into pyjamas and conjured blankets to cover them. He then turned to Harry, Hermione and Luna, the girls having sat up when Susan and Neville came into the room. There was no twinkle in Albus' eyes. In fact, it was the first time the three of them had ever seen him frown. "I am afraid I have terrible news. Neville's parents, along with several other patients in the long-term ward were poisoned. The poison will be difficult to trace, but we now know how they were poisoned. One of the orderlies was under the imperious curse and put it in their potions. We know what the poison is, but even had we known within minutes of their being poisoned, there would have been no saving them," Albus said, his demeanour sinking as each word was spoken; as if even speaking was a torturous effort. He looked up at Harry, "I am truly sorry, My Lord, for not being able to slow or stop the course of the poison. The only thing we could do was administer a Draught of Numbing to ease his passing. I have failed both of you again." Two fat tears ran down Albus' face as he buried his face in his hands.

Harry looked at Albus in shock. He was not the only one, as Poppy, too, had never seen Albus cry before. "Headmaster?" Harry called out. Nothing. No response at all from the old wizard. "Albus!" Harry shouted.

Albus looked up at him in surprise. He wiped his eyes and his cheeks.

"Headmaster, I think the best thing would be to take care of the living and ensure no one else will fall prey to this insidious poisoning plot. I am in no position to handle this problem and would appreciate it if you would provide any and all assistance you can to Director Bones, assuring her that her niece is safe and that neither Neville nor I will allow any harm to come to her," Harry said.

Albus nodded, "Thank you, Harry." He stood and left the infirmary in search of Severus and Minerva.

Poppy walked back over to the potion cabinet and took three more potion vials, one of which was only half the size of the other two. She gave one each of the larger vials to Hermione and Luna and watched as they drank them. Within moments, both girls were asleep, snuggled into one another. Madam Pomfrey levitated Hermione over to sandwich Luna between Harry and Hermione. Harry pulled Luna's sleeping form closer to him. Poppy lowered Hermione right next to Luna and then looked at Hannah. "Miss Abbot, this is a lesser potion of dreamless sleep. It will help you get to sleep and keep you asleep for at least three hours. Do try to get some rest," she said to Hannah with a small, sad smile. Hannah simply nodded at her, taking the vial but not yet drinking it. Poppy then turned to Harry, "Do try to get some sleep, Harry. I do wish I could give you something to sleep as it would help, especially considering all that has happened this evening."

Harry just nodded at her. Poppy went to the potion cabinet one final time and took out a large red-coloured potion and carried it to Hagrid, who thanked her as he drank it down. Steam shot from his ears as the Goblin version of the Pepper-Up potion gave the half-giant enough energy to remain awake and coherent through the night and the next day. She then went into her office and closed the door, needing the privacy so she could cry for the loss of her friends and the pain their son was feeling.

-oOoOo-

Hannah stood up from the bed and walked around to the other side and knelt down on the bed right next to Harry. She looked into his eyes and sighed. "Lord...Harry, would you do something for me?" she asked, her eyes half-lidded and a rosy hue rising in her cheeks.

Harry swallowed, his eyes wide open looking at the pretty witch hovering above him who was now lowering herself so their faces were a mere hand's breadth away. "What would you like me to do, Hannah?" he asked, swallowing once more, his upper lip quivering.

She lowered her lips to his ear. "Would you kiss me, just once, so I know what it's like to kiss you?" she whispered.

He spoke softly, but the slight tinge of anger and pain could be heard in his flat, monotone, "You want to kiss the boy who lived," he said.

Hannah jerked back, shaking her head, "No. I don't ever really think of you in those terms, Harry," she said, tears coming unbidden to her eyes. She continued, "You're not the boy who lived or the heir of Slytherin or the youngest seeker in a century, or even really Lord Abbot. Other than Neville, I think you're the only other honourable, decent, caring boy my age in the entire school." She began to move away, feeling as if she had missed her one and only opportunity to kiss him.

"Hannah. Wait," Harry said. She stopped and looked back at him. "I can't give you a proper kiss. Not now. Not here. Not like this. If you can wait until tomorrow afternoon, when Hermione and Luna are awake to share it with you and I can hold you in my arms, then I will give you a proper kiss," he said earnestly.

She moved closer again and leaned down until her lips were almost touching his, "A sample then, tonight?" she asked. He barely nodded. She closed her eyes and pressed her lips against his gently and gave him a warm, tender, lingering, chaste kiss. She drew back and sighed. She opened her eyes and saw him smile a sweet, little smile at her.

He whispered to her, "That was a nice sample, Hannah. Sleep sweet, Hannah. You need your rest."

She lowered her lips to his once more and briefly kissed him before drawing back and whispering, "With kisses like that, I know I shall have pleasant dreams." She moved to the edge of the bed, climbed down and walked to the other side. "Harry, would you close your eyes for me while I take off my robes?" she asked shyly.

"My eyes are closed," he said quietly, noticing Hagrid had his head deliberately turned to watch the door, and closed his eyes.

Hannah removed her robes, under which was her nightshirt. "Okay, Harry, you can open your eyes again," she said.

He lifted his head off the mattress to look at her. She was wearing a pale pink nightshirt that only went to mid-thigh. She looked at him and smiled as she pulled the blankets back and scooted in right next to Hermione. She tucked her wand beneath the pillow, opened the potion vial and drank the contents, quickly setting the vial on the bedside table. "Good night, Harry. I am so looking forward to tomorrow," she said, her last words slurred from the onset of the potion.

Harry looked up at the ceiling. "Gallmonger," he called. The elf appeared instantly with a soft pop.

"How can Gallmonger be helping Lord Harry?" the elf asked.

"Could you please dim the lights and check on Madam Pomfrey? I am going to try to sleep," Harry said, somewhat sadly.

The lights dimmed and Harry heard two soft pops and Madam Pomfrey's voice quietly talking to the elf. He closed his eyes and began softly humming a tune he had heard somewhere. He fell into a light doze.

-oOoOo-

Harry awoke suddenly. He felt someone laying against him. The lack of someone asleep on top of him caused him to panic for a moment until he remembered the events of the day. He heard voices and opened his eyes to slits. He looked towards the door to the hall and could hear Hagrid's voice intermingled with Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape.

He strained to hear what they were saying as Professor Snape and Hagrid carried a statue to a bed in the infirmary. He distinctly heard the Headmaster say, "Please go get Poppy, Minerva." He heard her quick steps go past his bed and continue to the door of Poppy's office. There was a soft sound of knocking and a quick, whispered conversation before two sets of footsteps walked to the bed three away from Harry.

"What happened?" Harry heard Poppy ask, fright in her voice.

"Another attack," Professor Snape said. "Minerva and I found him on the steps. There was a collection of foodstuffs around him and a spilled basket. We believe he was trying to visit Lord Potter."

Harry heard a creak. He turned his head slowly and saw, in the moonlight, that Professor Dumbledore had what appeared to be a camera in his hands. Harry looked down at the statue and saw the face. It was Colin Creevey.

"You don't suppose he took a picture of whomever it was that attacked him, do you?" Poppy asked.

Harry watched as Dumbledore opened the back of the camera. A jet of steam and acrid smoke shot out of the camera and the metallic scent of burnt plastic filled the air. Dumbledore looked at the twisted, melted plastic. "Melted. All melted..." he said, his voice tapering off in speculation.

"'At does this mean, Professor?" Hagrid asked quietly, his voice almost a whisper.

Albus met Severus' gaze, then looked at Hagrid. "It means, my gentle friend, that the Chamber of Secrets has been opened again."

Poppy looked at Albus, "But, Albus... who...?" she began to ask, but her voice trailed off as she looked at the frozen rictus of fear on Colin's face.

Albus, too, looked down at Colin, "The question is not who, my dear. The question is how."

From what Harry could see of the adults' faces, none of them seemed to have an answer.

-oOoOo-

It was quiet once more. The adults had all left except for Madam Pomfrey, who had gone into her office and closed the door, and Hagrid, who was silently sitting next to the door. Harry's eyes were closed but he was unable to sleep. He tensed at the sound of a scratching at the door. He slowly opened his eyes to slits and turned his head towards the infirmary door. Hagrid was slowly and silently pulling back the string of his crossbow by hand, ignoring the windlass crank. He then placed a quarrel into the flight groove and slid it under the retention spring. He then held the crossbow like an enormous pistol in his right hand as he quickly opened the infirmary door. He looked out the door, then looked down. Harry could not see what Hagrid was looking at. Hagrid looked over at Harry's bed and saw that his eyes were open. A huge smile bloomed on Hagrid's face as he looked back at the crossbow, set the safety, removed the quarrel and set the crossbow down on the ground. He reached down with his index finger extended and crouched down. He slowly stood once more, softly cooing to whatever it was he saw. Hagrid then turned and Harry nearly jumped for joy. Hagrid closed the door and carried Hedwig over to Harry's bed and held her out.

He looked down at the smile on Harry's face. "I know you can't pet 'er yet, 'Arry, but she sure seems 'appy to see ya," Hagrid said.

Harry, too, cooed softly to his second-ever friend. "Hello Girl! I missed you!" he said emotionally. Hedwig hopped down from Hagrid's finger onto Harry's chest and looked at him for a moment. She then flared her wings and slowly but gently flapped them into his cheeks. She hooted then jumped into flight and landed on the railing at the head of the bed. She flared her wings once more to full width before tucking her head beneath one of them.

Hagrid looked at the owl with a smile, then looked back down at Harry, "Go back to sleep, 'Arry. I have a feeling she'll be waiting for you when you wake up."

Harry looked up at his first-ever friend, "Thank you, Hagrid," he said, his spirit feeling much higher.

Hagrid reached down and tousled his hair, "Sleep well, Lad. I'll make sure of it. Close your eyes and sleep."

Harry nodded and closed his eyes once more, a smile firmly on his face. He heard Hagrid walk back to his stool and pick up his crossbow once more. Harry slept the rest of the night without interruption.

-oOoOo-


	23. Gone With The Wand

-oOo-AN-oOo-

This took far too long to get out, and for that you have my sincerest apologies. I've been focused on a number of assignments and on another story. I felt it was unfair to leave the readers of this story in the lurch, as it were, and am truly apologetic for that.

I have not abandoned this, or any other, story.

-oOo-AN-oOo-

-oOoOo-

Secret Loves Year 2 Chapter 23 – Gone With The Wand

-oOoOo-

Harry awoke and was immediately concerned. His human blanket was missing but there was a slight weight on his stomach. _Where is Hermione?!_ He opened his eyes to see the dawn's light shining in through the infirmary windows. He looked down at his stomach and was surprised. Mrs. Norris' bed was still on his stomach, but Hedwig was now perched on the rigid edge of the cat bed and had her wings protectively encircling the petrified cat. Her own head was tucked under her wings in sleep. He slowly tried to sit up so as not to disturb Hedwig and only then remembered he was strapped down to the bed. He looked over and, with a sigh of relief, saw Hermione spooned between Luna and Hannah. Through the bond, he could feel Luna and Hermione were both still asleep. He gently reached over, placed his hand on the back of Luna's head and, with his finger weaving into her hair, gently caressed her scalp.

Madam Pomfrey walked out of her office and smiled when she saw Harry was awake. "Good morning, Harry. I trust you slept well," she said softly as she stopped at the bed and waved a wand over his arm.

He smiled at her. "I did sleep soundly, amazingly enough," he said. The smile from his face faded as she frowned at the results of her scan.

She cast the diagnostic spell again and then a third time, muttering, "This can't be right," under her breath.

"What can't be right, Madam Pomfrey?" Harry asked quietly.

She answered him by undoing the strap on his chest and gripped his arm, squeezing and pulling on it. "Does this hurt at all?" she asked, pulling gently on each of his fingers.

A smile slowly crept onto his face, "No. It doesn't!" he quietly exclaimed.

Madam Pomfrey looked at him quizzically. "Move your arm slowly around, at the elbow and at the shoulder," she directed. Harry complied, moving his arm all about. "Take my finger and squeeze as hard as you can," she instructed, holding her index finger out. He squeezed it with all of his might. "That's enough," she said. "Any pain or discomfort at all?" she asked.

"No!" he exclaimed somewhat in surprise, "It feels as good as new!" he exclaimed.

"Huh? What? I don't want to get up yet, Susie," Hannah said groggily.

Madam Pomfrey looked over at Hannah, then whispered to Harry, "You're free to go when you want to, Harry, but I can have one of the elves bring you and Miss Abbot breakfast, and you can wait here until I have given your Ladies a clean bill of health."

"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey. I am somewhat hungry," Harry said quietly, then looked over at Hannah. "Breakfast for two to start?" he asked. He looked up and saw Hedwig was still sleeping. "And a small plate of sausages and bacon?"

She nodded and went back to her office.

Harry lay back down. He did not know how long he had stared at the ceiling, but a pained groaning brought his attention back to the room and he looked to his right. On the next bed lay the petrified body of Colin Creevey. On the bed past that, the sheets were ballooned up and Harry could see Millicent Bulstrode's head upon the pillow. It was from the muscular Slytherin girl, the sounds emanated. As if on cue, Madam Pomfrey came out of her office with a potion in her hand and walked to Millicent's bed. Harry tried to ignore the conversation going on a bed away, but it was difficult.

"How are you feeling this morning, Miss Bulstrode?" Madam Pomfrey asked.

Harry could hear the tenseness in Millicent's voice as she replied,"I am doing," she paused for a moment and spoke again, her voice sounding as if she were speaking through gritted teeth,"better this morning," she said. Harry could hear her breathing heavily.

"This is simply something for the pain. It will take only a moment for it to begin to work and then, after breakfast, we'll put some more burn salve on your legs," Madam Pomfrey said.

There was silence for a minute. Millicent spoke again, "Thank you, Madam Pomfrey," she said in a normal tone of voice, "that helps the pain significantly."

"Good. I will have your breakfast brought to you," Madam Pomfrey said. From the tone of her voice, Harry could tell she was smiling.

"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey," Millicent said.

Madam Pomfrey walked back to her office, smiling at Harry's attempt to give Millicent some privacy.

Harry turned back over to look at Millicent. She was looking up at the ceiling. "Good morning, Miss Bulstrode," Harry said neutrally.

Millicent turned her head, "Good morning, Lord Potter. Is Granger going to be okay?" she asked.

Harry was surprised Millicent would care about Hermione's well-being, but deserved an honest answer. "I hope so, Miss Bulstrode," he said cautiously, "she wasn't physically harmed, and I don't see her attacker getting a second chance at her," he said evenly. In his mind he was rapidly thinking of ways to kill Lockhart without having to flee Britain. "How are you doing, Miss Bulstrode?" Harry asked, then in a gentler tone asked, "And do you mind if I call you Millicent?"

She smiled at this, "I rather prefer it. May I call you Harry?" she asked, her tone, too, becoming more congenial.

Harry smiled, "I would like that," he said, causing Millicent to smile as well.

"As to how I am doing, Harry, Madam Pomfrey says that if it hadn't been for Granger..." Harry raised an eyebrow at her, "um...Hermione and Daphne, I would be dead right now due to the shock. I can't help but think Crabbe overheated the cauldron intentionally. Although he seemed distracted by something, he is usually very determined to keep me from hurting him for making inept mistakes," Millicent said only loudly enough for Harry to hear.

"You know when you got hurt that someone had thrown fire salamander tongue into both Hermione's and my potion and Neville's and Dean's potion," Harry said then, seeing the expression of horror on Millicent's face, explained further, "it was the reason Professor Snape asked us to stay after class."

Millicent's spoke with a tone of shock, "How is it you lived? How is it any of us lived? We should all be dead!"

Harry swallowed and explained, "It was Hermione. She had us brew in corn starch at step two. She said it was inexpensive insurance."

Millicent laughed a wicked little laugh, "I suppose I owe her two life debts then. One for my legs, the other for the cornstarch."

Harry turned his head to look at the large Slytherin girl, "Millicent," he said and she turned her head to look at him, "she would likely want your friendship more than any debt," he said matter-of-factly.

Millicent gave Harry one of her rare smiles, "We'll have to see what we can do about that then, Harry." Millicent looked up at the ceiling. "_I suspected it was Malfoy. Here is the proof. Crabbe never acts on his own. This has Malfoy written all over it. It's just a matter of finding out who the remainder of his accomplices were and, when I find them, they'll receive a most deserved gift,_" Millicent thought with a small smile.

Hannah stirred with a barely-audible moan. Harry slowly sat up, gently scooting the cat bed and sleeping owl down to his upper legs, and moved so he was sitting against his pillow as a cushion for the bars of the headboard.

He looked over at Hannah who, although he could see her eyes moving rapidly beneath their lids, they were not yet open, was clearly having a happy dream. She nuzzled further into Hermione's hair and was cooing at her softly.

"Hannah," Harry softly called out to her. Hannah nuzzled Hermione's neck, reached up and pulled the brunette witch's hair aside and kissed her neck. "Han. Nah!" Harry called out louder.

-oOoOo-

Hannah had been having a wonderful, though odd, dream. She and Susan were kissing one another yet Neville was kissing Susan's neck and someone was kissing her neck. Her dream vision stepped back and Susan was kissing Hannah's neck, too. The dream vision pulled back further and Hermione was kissing Susan's neck, Luna was kissing Hermione's neck and Harry was kissing Luna's neck. Suddenly, and without apparent motion, the order changed. What never changed was that she and Susan were kissing one another. It was clear the Susan she was kissing was really enjoying the kissing. She took a deep breath and was inhaling the scents of lavender, lilacs, parchment, holly and a hint of something. Whatever the something was felt intoxicating, exotic, exhilarating, haunting, and just a bit naughty. It excited her. She pulled her lips away from Susan's and, with a slow, but determined motion, turned Susan around and began nibbling her neck. She realised her desire was overwhelming her.

Susan called her name quietly, but it wasn't Susan's voice. She thought Susan must be enjoying this to call out her name, so Hannah pulled Susan's hair out of the way and ran her tongue slowly and wetly over her neck.

Her name was called out again, in a drawn out fashion, but in the same voice although it appeared to be coming from Neville now. "Han. Nah!" She closed her eyes and wrapped her arm around Susan and began pulling her blouse out of the waistband of her skirt. Hannah wanted to touch Susan's bare tummy. She wanted to feel Susan's bare skin. She wanted to hear Susan's breath catch when her hand slid over bare tummy. She loved how Susan's eyelashes would flutter and close with a deep sigh when she did this. Although she hadn't done anything more than touch Susan's tummy, Susan always blushed a deep red, her eyes closed and she tensed slightly, expecting Hannah to do more.

"Hannah!" a voice called sharply, startling her. She awoke from her dream and realised she was nuzzling into Hermione's neck and that her hand had, in fact, slipped into Hermione's pyjama top and was slowly rubbing circles on Hermione's warm, bare tummy.

-oOoOo-

"Hannah!" Harry shouted. Hannah's eyes fluttered open. Harry had been concerned she was having a vivid dream and didn't want Hermione awakening to someone taking liberties with her, even if they were relatively innocent and, he suspected, not entirely unwanted liberties.

"Harry?!" Hannah asked in surprise. She pulled her hand away from Hermione and sat up in bed. She was surprised she was sleeping in Harry's bed when the events of the previous evening came flooding back to her. She turned her head and saw Susan curled around Neville.

Millicent had heard, but not seen Harry shout at someone named "Hannah" which she presumed was Hannah Abbot from Hufflepuff, _but isn't she with Bones and Longbottom?_ she thought. She continued "gathering information" as she considered "eavesdropping" to be a crude and inaccurate word.

"Hannah, I think you and I should be awake when the potions wear off and likely shouldn't be..." Harry paused and looked at his own hand running over Luna's scalp before he self-consciously stopped and put his hands in his lap, "um...pawing at them," he finished, a slight blush on his cheeks.

Harry's comments also caused Hannah to blush and feel somewhat hurt by his less-than-accurate assessment. She looked into his eyes, "I was dreaming about Susan, Harry. I also was not 'pawing' Hermione, but was merely caressing her soft, warm, smooth, bare," Hannah started getting a dreamy look on her face but realized Harry was raising an eyebrow at her, "um...er...tummy."

From the next bed over, Neville, and then Susan, began making awakening sounds. Shortly thereafter, Hermione, then Luna, did as well.

Neither Hannah nor Harry wanted Hermione or Neville having post-potion dreams but other than startling them awake, Hannah had no idea what to do. Harry, however, had lots of practice, it seemed, waking up his girls and provided Hannah with some advice.

"Go over and give Susan a kiss," he told her.

"What?" Hannah asked him neutrally, crossing her arms in front of her.

"You and Susan wanted to learn how to kiss. What better way for her to wake up than getting kissed by you? Once she's awake, you both can kiss Neville awake. I'd suggest you steal his lips from Susan, though," he said with a calculating smile.

Harry then proceeded to demonstrate to Hannah using Luna as an example. He put his hand on her hip and gently pulled her so she was laying on her back. He then gently pulled her mouth open and kissed her. As he kissed her, he pulled her pyjama top up to expose her soft, warm tummy and rubbed it in gentle, slow circles with two fingers.

Almost immediately upon his hand's contact with her exposed skin, Luna's eyes flew open wide and then, once she realised this wasn't a dream, she kissed him back for all she was worth. After a minute, they broke the kiss with Luna shuddering slightly. A smile blossomed on her face, she nodded her head and then rolled onto her side again, scooted right up next to Hermione and ever so gently kissed her as she pushed her feelings for Hermione over the bond they shared. Instead of opening her eyes in shock, Hermione wrapped her arms back around the younger witch and returned the kiss immediately.

Hannah watched the beginning of the kiss but was afraid Susan would wake up before she had the opportunity to wake her this way. Hannah hopped out of bed and gently sat down on Susan's and Neville's bed and got in behind Susan.

She gently pulled on Susan's hip, causing Susan to roll on her back. She, too, carefully pulled Susan's mouth open, pulled up Susan's pyjama top and kissed her just before her hand touched Susan's bare skin.

Very much like Luna's and Hermione's kiss, Susan did not open her eyes but wrapped her arms tightly around Hannah. This caused Hannah's eyes to fly open widely in shock. Susan had always been timid before. _What changed?_ Hannah wondered.

-oOoOo-

"Will you just take the bloody letter already?" Remus said, taking another sip of fire whiskey. Sirius finally reached over towards the Hogwarts school owl who had been patiently waiting for half an hour for Sirius to take the note, and carefully untied the small envelope from the owl's leg. He carefully opened the envelope, removed the parchment from within, unfolded it and began reading until Remus interrupted him, "Read it aloud, Sirius."

Sirius looked up at Remus, then nodded and began reading the letter to Remus.

"**Dear Sirius,"** it began, "**I hope you are well. Hermione often writes in a more lengthy fashion, going on about the weather and school work and the like. I am simply pants at that sort of thing and tend to be, as Luna says, blunt and to the point in my writing."**

"**I need your guidance with a matter of importance, but I want you to read this entire letter before you come running to the rescue or going out on a hunting expedition."**

"The boy knows you all too well!" Remus exclaimed, laughing. His laughter very quickly stopped as Sirius continued reading.

"**One of the professors at school tried to rape Hermione. Hermione does not know I am telling you this as I am not sure she would agree with some of the things I am thinking of doing and I am sure you are thinking of doing as well. Professor Snape," **Sirius stopped reading and exploded, "That greasy, conniving, back-stabbing, paedophile rapist bastard!" Sirius was seething, his face purpling and his fists clenching and unclenching in rage.

It took Remus' slap across the face to get him focused again, "Sirius, before you go off and try to kill a fellow Lord, why don't you see what Harry has to say about Snape?"

Sirius held his cheek with his free hand then huffed and held the letter up again to read, his face still throbbing as a reminder of the impact of Remus' hand. **"Professor Snape and Hagrid managed to break into the other professor's office just in time to prevent Hermione any harm. Professor Snape has sworn an oath of fealty to me and, although we have not discussed it, I am certain he knows Hermione and Luna are my wives. He was very protective of Luna and Hermione and is treating everyone much better than he did last year."**

"You see," Remus said.

Sirius simply grunted, then nodded and continued reading.

"**The professor who attacked Hermione has disappeared from the castle, but the house elves swear he is still around."**

"You realise I am going with you, Siri," Remus said quietly.

Sirius looked up at his brother-by-choice, "There's no one I would rather have at my back, Remus. There's more to the letter," he said and continued reading.

"**Hermione tells me she is fine, but I know she continues to be afraid. Afraid for herself, afraid for Luna and afraid for the other girls in the school. I'm afraid for them myself, Padfoot. Afraid enough that Neville or his girlfriends never leave Hermione unless she's with me, and two of the girls in Luna's year in Ravenclaw never leave her by herself."**

"**I plan on asking Neville to write to his grandmother about this to find out what she thinks should be done. I am also going to ask one of Neville's girlfriends, Susan Bones, to write to her Aunt to let her know my concerns about this as well. I am certain, considering your familiarity with her the other day, you are quite aware of who Madam Bones is and her role as the Director of the DMLE."**

"**With what happened to Luna's father and Neville's parents, I am afraid for Mum and Dad Granger. I know the house is warded, but that doesn't keep them safe when they're not at home."**

"**I am also sending a letter to Ironclaw and Steelfist to see what help they can provide. I don't want to take undo liberties with people I think of as friends, even though I would insist upon paying for their time and services."**

"**I miss you, Godfather."**

"**Your loving Godson, Harry."**

"**P.S. Neville could use a godfather about now too."**

"Do you want a sobering potion as well?" Remus asked, getting out of his chair and walking towards the kitchen.

Sirius looked at the letter in his hands and then looked up at Remus, "Yes. I never plan well when I'm drunk." Remus nodded and left the room. Sirius sat, reading the last part of the letter again.

"Any thoughts on a peace offering for Snape?" Remus asked as he walked back into the room and handed Sirius the potion.

"Short of my head on a platter?" Sirius asked.

"Well, that was a bit more than I was thinking. If I recall correctly, he did have an attraction to your cousin Narcissa," Remus said thoughtfully, "which was mutual."

"We'll need to speak with the Goblins. The last time I discussed this with them, Narcissa wanted to delay the annulment of her marriage as long as possible." Sirius looked at the letter again. He then spoke sharply, "I will not force her to do anything. She is not someone to be bought or sold. I shall ask the Goblins to speak with her about this, however." He put the potion vial to his lips and paused, "I hate the flavour of these things," he said and downed the vial in one swallow.

Remus nodded and drank his potion as well then shuddered. He then looked at Sirius, "Where in the name of Slytherin's shrivelled scrotum did you buy these potions from? They're even more horrific than the ones Lily used to brew for us!"

"Dierdre's Apothecary," Sirius said defensively, "and they're a lot better tasting than the ones I brew. Where do you buy your potions from?"

"Gringott's. They brew ingredients into their potions which flavour the potions in such a way to disgust Goblins but those same ingredients make the potions quite palatable to wizards and witches. Their leaders found this out recently and discovered the same is true of the potions we brew for ourselves. To us they taste like sludge and to the Goblins they taste like fruit juice. I am one of their testers for a Goblin-reformulated wolfsbane potion, thanks to Harry. Their hope is that it will be a curative, not merely a...oh what was the term they used...ah yes! A symptomatic suppressor."

Sirius looked at his friend and smiled, then shook his head. He looked back at the letter, then stared off into the distance. He had a professor's death to plan.

-oOoOo-

Neville woke to a puddle of soft, almost gooey, warmth laying next to him. He opened his eyes sleepily, then opened them wide in shock, blushing nearly to his toes. Susan was in bed with him. So was Hannah. And the two of them were snogging. Although he was embarrassed, he could not tear his eyes away from how beautiful and exciting he considered the scene before him. He then wondered if this had been the reason Susan thought he would be uncomfortable with Hannah around.

As he was musing about the possibilities, Hannah and Susan ended their kiss. Susan was practically purring. Hannah, however, noted they had a coherent, or so she presumed, wizard as an audience and decided there and then that, since Harry was a wizard and knew how boys thought about such things, she would take his advice. She moved so she was straddling Susan. She turned to Neville, pulled his mouth gently open and sealed his mouth with hers._ Here goes! I hope he doesn't hate me,_ she thought.

Neville was gob-smacked!

Neville had been kissing Susan a lot lately. He had even received a kiss or three from Hannah, but those had always been chaste kisses on the cheek; the types of kisses his grandmother gave him. While his conscious mind was trying to determine the reasons she would do this, his subconscious mind was examining her technique. _Breathe through your nose. Check. GENTLY run the tip of your tongue around the tip of her tongue. Check. Learn to suck her tongue into your mouth the way she is sucking your tongue into her mouth. Work in progress. Put your hand behind her head to hold her from escaping. Check. Rotate your head so your noses don't bang into one another. Check. Use your other hand to explore how soft her torso is no lower than her pyjama bottoms and no higher than just above her navel. Check._

When the kiss broke, he had been wondering what her reaction would be if he kissed her bare torso, but decided he preferred his head and his own torso to be in relatively close proximity to one another as he was quite fond of using his lips and his hands, if for nothing more than to kiss, at the very least, these two girls.

"Good morning, Neville," Hannah said brightly. Neville was about to reply, but didn't have the opportunity.

Thinking about Susan, or the end of the kiss with Hannah, must have been some secret girl signal as Susan now kissed him in almost exactly the same way Hannah had. She, too, said. "Good morning, Neville," when she finished the kiss.

When he didn't immediately reply, Hannah looked to Susan with a smile. "We win!" she exclaimed, then couldn't help herself and began giggling. Susan tried to feign worry, but she, too, began giggling.

Harry was looking at Neville, hoping this distraction would help Neville cope with the sudden, unexpected loss of his parents. He was lost in his thoughts and was startled when he felt arms slowly encircling him and a sense of fear and something else coming across the bond.

Hermione's warm breath in his ear was exhilarating. He was almost relieved with the source of her fear.

"Harry, would you rather be in Neville's place kissing Hannah and Susan?" Hermione whispered nervously.

Harry turned, wrapped his arm around Hermione and pulled her into his side. She let out a quiet yelp of surprise, causing him to smile. He looked into her chocolate eyes and whispered back to her only loud enough for her to hear, "Although I promised Hannah a real kiss, that is as far as it will go for me, Beautiful. I love you, Mrs. Hermione Jane Potter. I love our Little Miss Luna. Yes, I wish I could spend every waking moment hugging and kissing," he paused and kissed her gently, "the two of you, but I was more worried about Neville and how he is going to cope with the loss of his mum and dad," he paused again to kiss Hermione as Luna cuddled into his side and kissed his cheek, "but I wouldn't ever knowingly do something to hurt the two of you," he whispered.

Luna chimed in, "And we still promised Susan and Hannah kissing lessons today," then picked up Hermione's leg and kissed her foot, causing Hermione to squirm at the slight sensation of being tickled, "and those lessons," Luna continued, "might be fun, Hermione, but my heart belongs to the two of you. Never ever forget that."

-oOoOo-

Hedwig awoke at the sound of the girls' giggling. She lifted her head from beneath her wings and looked out. Her human was performing one of their long, drawn-out mating rituals. She flared her wings and flew to the perch at the end of the human nest nearest their heads. She sensed amusement and affection from her human. He and his mates were safe and that was all that mattered at the moment.

Whatever had harmed the huntress would, however, need to be consumed. Whatever had harmed her could harm others, possibly end them. Her humans had to be protected.

-oOoOo-

Millicent had watched as the group of six friends interacted. They had been released by Madam Pomfrey with appropriate warnings about keeping an eye out for any unusual behaviour when Millicent called out to Hermione for a private discussion. Millicent thanked Hermione for saving her life, not once, but twice, explaining what Harry had told her about the sabotaging of the Gryffindors' potions.

Millicent then explained what she knew of life debts and, removing her wand from beneath her pillow, formally recognized the life debt the House of Bulstrode owed to Hermione. Millicent recommended Hermione have the house elves find a particular book, "The Debts of Life" by Nicholas Flamel, discussing the magic and wizarding law regarding life debts, and explained to Hermione that since Millicent recognized owing a life debt to Hermione for her foresight in brewing the potions with cornstarch, all pureblood families that had family members present also owed her a life debt.

The magic of the oath would cause the debts to be recorded at the Ministry, and likely owls would be winging their ways to the heads of the pureblood families in question to notify them of their debt.

Needless to say, breakfast the next morning would be interesting.

-oOoOo-

Hermione left the Infirmary somewhat stunned. She nearly walked straight into Harry, realising only at the last minute, and wrapped her arms around him for support.

"Whatever is the matter, Mione-Love?" Harry whispered softly into her ear.

"Just something we need to research that Millicent told me about. Nothing to really worry about at the moment, Harry," she said, releasing her hug and taking his hand. "Millicent is very nice, Harry, and I think we should visit her while she is confined to the Infirmary. She told me Madam Pomfrey said she was going to be there for at least two more week."

"Then, of course, we will visit her and bring her assignments to her, Mione-Love," Harry said, kissing her temple. "You're always so thoughtful," he concluded.

The six of them entered the Great Hall, ate an uneventful breakfast then took a calm, quiet, slow walk around the lake, allowing Harry and Neville an opportunity to talk about Neville's parents, and giving Neville an opportunity to mourn their loss in the company of his friends.

-oOoOo-

Two Gringott's owls and a white-tailed sea eagle landed almost simultaneously in front of Neville and Harry.

"That's a white-tailed sea eagle! They're almost extinct!" Hermione whispered loudly, in reverent tones.

Neville looked at her strangely. "Extinct? It's my Great Uncle Algernon's eagle, Sydney." Neville held out his arm and the eagle hopped from the ground to his arm. With his other hand, he carefully untied the grey envelope from the eagle's leg, put the envelope in the pocket of his robes before scratching beneath the feathers of the eagle's head.

Harry and Susan took the black envelopes from the Gringott's owls, which immediately took off and disappeared. Sydney tracked the two owls until they were out of his sight. He then looked at Neville with his right eye, seemed to wink, loudly cawed, flared his wings and took off from Neville's arm, circling wider and wider circles over the lake, and flew off into the distance.

All but Neville watched the bird until it disappeared. Neville reached into his pocket and removed the envelope. He removed his wand and expanded the envelope. He noted the wax seal was intact and retained its magic, indicating the message within had not been tampered with. He broke the seal and removed the letter from within. He read the short note and sighed.

"What's wrong, Neville?" Susan asked with concern.

Neville looked up at her, a resigned look on his face, "Great Uncle Algernon wrote to tell me Gran is beside herself and is inconsolable and believes Mum and Dad's death is her fault. He has asked me, as Lord Longbottom, to come home and speak with her." Neville looked a bit lost.

"Would you like us to come with you, Neville?" Susan asked, adoration and concern in her voice, and her eyes wide as she took his arm.

"I would really like that," Neville said in relief.

"Lord Longbottom, from one head of a Founding Family to another, I would be honoured to escort you to your ancestral home to provide comfort to your grandmother in her time of grief," Harry said formally, then looked at Luna.

Luna took her cue as well. "Lord Longbottom, House Lovegood stands with you in your time of need, and will, with a heavy heart, escort you to your home and help in any way we can," she said, her voice strong.

"May I come, too, Neville?" Hannah asked, taking Neville's other arm.

"I would like that, too," Neville said with a smile, pulling the two girls into a hug.

"But how are we going to get permission to leave the school?" Hermione asked in concern.

Harry looked at her with a smile, "That's the easy part, Mione-Love Luna, Neville and I are heads of houses, so we are adults as far as the school is concerned. I am your magical guardian and can provide you with permission."

Harry then turned to Hannah. "Miss Abbot, as head of your house, I am instructing you to escort Lord Longbottom to his ancestral home as a representative of House Abbot and to extend our condolences to House Longbottom. You are to represent House Abbot with the grace, beauty, compassion, and intellect I have come to expect from you."

He then turned back to Hermione. "That takes care of Hannah," he said with a smile.

"But what about me?" Susan asked timidly.

Harry thought for a moment and then smiled. "Beltchirp?" he called.

The elf appeared before him and knelt. "How may Beltchirp serve his Lord and Ladies?" he asked.

"Beltchirp, please don't kneel when you come. You are not subservient to me in my eyes," Harry gently chastised.

Beltchirp stood. He was still not entirely used to his new family. He looked at Harry and smiled.

Harry returned the smile and addressed the unusual elf, "Could you go to Madam Amelia Bones and ask her, as the representative of House Potter, for written permission for Susan to leave Hogwarts to travel to Longbottom Manor to attend Madam Augusta Longbottom in her grief and hour of need? Let her know I am the one asking."

Beltchirp nodded, snapped his fingers and popped out.

The six of them began walking back to the castle. Halfway there, Beltchirp, along with Madam Bones, Senior Auror Shacklebolt and another auror appeared in front of them.

"Lord Harry, Lady Bones wishes to speak to you, your friends, and her niece and ward," Beltchirp said.

"Thank you for bringing her, Beltchirp," Harry said. Beltchirp popped out with the snap of his fingers.

Harry and Neville both bowed, while Luna curtseyed. "Madam Bones, I appreciate you coming on such short notice," Harry said.

Amelia nodded to all of them and then looked with a raised eyebrow at Susan, with her arm around Neville's waist and his arm around her shoulders.

"Auntie!" Susan said excitedly, extricating herself from Neville and wrapping her arms around her Aunt.

Amelia wrapped her arms around her niece and kissed the top of her head. _"She's growing up so fast,_" Amelia thought. "Hello to you, too, Susan. What is this I hear about you wanting to go to Longbottom Manor?" she asked.

Susan looked up into her aunt's eyes. "Neville's grandmother is distraught and I thought I should go with him and my friends to help comfort her," she explained.

Amelia had to smile. "And you are good friends with Neville?" she asked, suspecting the answer.

"We're almost boyfriend and girlfriend, Auntie," Susan replied somewhat guiltily. Shacklebolt was not entirely successful in stifling his laughter.

"Really?" she looked down at Susan seriously. "And who is your chaperone for this meeting at Longbottom Manor?" Amelia asked.

Harry was about to wade into the conversation when Mippy, the first house elf Luna had bonded with, popped in with a well-dressed, angry Sirius Black and a well-dressed but somewhat surprised Remus Lupin.

"...am not going anywhere with you!" Sirius was leaned over and shouting at Mippy, then looked up to see he was on the grounds of Hogwarts.

"Yous is going to help your Lord Harry's friends and that will be that!" the little elf shouted at Sirius.

Sirius stood to his full height. "Madam Bones, Senior Auror Shacklebolt, Auror Collins," he said, looking at the head of the DMLE hugging a young girl.

"Lord Black," Amelia said with a smile. She then looked at Susan, "Allow me to introduce my niece, Susan Ophelia Bones, my late brother Eric's daughter," Amelia said, releasing Susan from her embrace.

Susan turned and curtseyed, "Lord Black," she said demurely.

"Miss Bones," Sirius said, taking the girl's hand and helping her to rise, "you are as charming and as beautiful as your aunt," he continued, causing a blush to come to Susan's cheeks.

"Sirius, please don't flirt with my best friend's girlfriend." Harry said.

Sirius' smile froze on his face. He turned around to see Luna, Hermione, Hannah, Neville and Harry looking at him. He could see the mirth in Harry's, Luna's and Hermione's eyes. If looks could kill, however, Neville's and Hannah's gazes would have, but as it was, they were only slightly less amused, hoping Sirius wasn't really poaching Neville's girlfriend.

"Um...Hello Harry. Hello Neville," Sirius said with some chagrin. He then bowed without embarrassment, "Ladies," he said with a flourish.

Remus couldn't hold his laughter in any longer. "Smooth, Sirius," he guffawed.

"Lord Black, the six of us were going to go to Longbottom Manor to console Madam Longbottom. Madam Bones would appreciate us being accompanied by an adult. As such, we appreciate you bringing Master Lupin with you to act as such," Neville said with amusement.

"Hey now!" Sirius exclaimed, crossing his arms in front of him. Then he sighed. "Fine. Remus and I would be happy to attend with all of you," Sirius said.

"Thank you, Lord Black," Amelia said, then turned to Remus, "and thank you, Master Lupin." She then turned to Susan. "Please be back before this evening's dinner," Amelia said.

Susan once more embraced her aunt. "Thank you, Auntie!" she exclaimed.

"Madam Bones, are you also here to investigate the attack on the student last night?" Harry asked.

Since there were screens in place around Colin's bed this morning, none of the other children knew what Harry was on about so looked at him in surprise. Hermione gripped his arm hard. Sirius and Remus also looked at Harry with mock surprise.

The three aurors, if anything, seemed to be angry. "What student attack, Lord Potter?" Shacklebolt asked.

Harry looked at the senior auror. "A student was petrified last night. I was certain the DMLE would have been notified about the attacks," Harry explained.

Amelia looked at her two aurors. "No, Lord Potter, we were unaware of this incident. I promise you I will know everything about it before we leave Hogwarts, however," Amelia said with determination.

Harry called Beltchirp and asked him to take Madam Bones and the two aurors directly to Dumbledore's office.

-oOoOo-

"Harry?" Hermione asked timidly.

"Yes, Mione-Love?" he responded, looking at her and seeing her acting physically timid as well.

"Why didn't you tell Madam Bones about Lockhart?" she asked, looking up from her shoes at Harry. The expression she saw there frightened her.

"Because Auntie would be required to arrest him, isn't that right, Harry?" Susan asked knowingly.

Harry hesitated a moment, then nodded, a grim expression on his face.

"Pup? What happened?" Sirius asked, remembering that Harry had indicated in his letter he had not told Hermione about writing to him, and so he played dumb.

Harry looked up at him, not certain whether to answer or not in front of everyone.

"Come on, Cub. Tell us. You know we will find out regardless," Remus explained, also nicely playing being dumb about the situation.

Harry thought about this a few moments, then nodded. "Our DADA professor..." he began.

"That blonde fop who uses more male beauty products than Malfoy Senior?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, Professor Gilderoy Geoffrey Lockhart," Harry said venomously, then looked over at Hermione, who was being comforted by Luna, Hannah, and Susan, as she was crying.

"What did he do?" Sirius asked in a dangerous tone of voice, watching Hermione crumbling.

"He attempted to take liberties with Hermione last night under the auspices of a detention," Harry said, clenching and unclenching his fists.

Remus knelt down in front of Hermione, so he was eye to eye with her. "Look at me, Hermione. With your permission, I would like to see what you saw," Remus explained, his voice quiet and gentle.

Hermione looked up at him, relaxed her mind, and opened her eyes widely.

Remus was somewhat taken aback that she knew how to prepare herself for a voluntary Legilimancy scan. He entered her mind as gently as he could.

He watched as she destroyed the bludger, then heard the declaration regarding her detention. "Even his speech is slimy!" he thought to himself, but continued reviewing her memories.

-oOoOo-

Remus finished his Legilimancy scan of Hermione. When he pulled his awareness back to the present, he noted Hermione looked drained. He was somewhat surprised when she collapsed onto him and began sobbing. He wrapped his arms gently around her and provided a rather large, water-absorbing shoulder for her to cry on.

He was also somewhat surprised when, instead of becoming jealous, Harry and Luna approached Hermione on either side and wrapped her and Remus in hugs and held them there until Hermione's shoulders stopped quaking.

She lifted her head from his shoulder and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, Uncle Remus," she whispered to him before pulling out of his embrace.

-oOoOo-


End file.
